Transformers Prime Shattered Glass
by JTVectorSigma
Summary: The concept of Shattered Glass is that there is a parallel universe where everything is mirrored: all good people are evil and all evil people are good. In Transformers, the original Shattered Glass happened when G1 Cliffjumper was transported to this mirror-verse. I've always wondered what Shattered Glass would look like in the Aligned Continuity- that is, Transformers Prime...
1. Malfunction

Transformers Prime Shattered Glass

Chapter 1: Malfunction

**A/N: if you really need me to tell you, this starts during "Shadowzone".**

"Makin' a break!" Jack leapt forward in pursuit of Miko. His shin slammed into a crate that he was almost certain hadn't been there before- Miko must've moved it. She was way smarter than she let on. He stumbled, and Miko dropped down the stairs in three bounds. Jack took off, Raf right behind him.

The three of them had been relaxing in the Autobot base, playing video games and the like, when Ratchet had detected the surge of Dark Energon. With Megatron's recent resurrection, they had to assume the worst. The Autobots set off through the ground-bridge. And Miko was attempting to follow. Again.

Arcee never even looked over as the three children ran into the ground-bridge. Jack managed to latch onto Miko's arm, just inside the vortex. "It's not safe!" he grunted, struggling to pull her back.

"I am not going to miss my first zombie-Con throwdown!" She yanked her arm free and bolted.

"Miko!" Jack cried in frustration. For a moment he was tempted to just let her go, consequences be damned- if she was that eager to get crushed by Decepticons, why stop her? Then he ran after. The portal closed behind them.

None of them noticed the small pink device that had fallen in the brief struggle.

They emerged directly behind the four Autobots. Miko clambered up a rock pile, Jack and Raf hard-pressed to keep up.

"That's not Megatron!" Bulkhead exclaimed, but it seemed muffled by an awful whine.

Starscream's high-pitched yowl, on the other hand, reached their ears fine: "Rise, Skyquake, rise!"

Miko trembled with excitement. "Let's see some fight of the living dead, already!"

Jack knelt beside her. "Miko, what were you thinking?" His anger was almost palpable.

"She wasn't," Raf panted as he dropped to his knees.

"Hey, I totally missed out last time. This could be my only chance to take some snaps!" Miko reached back for her phone. Excitement turned to confusion as she realized it wasn't there. "I must've left it back at base!" Slowly, she turned to glare at Jack.  
-

_Meanwhile..._

Optimus Prime extended his arm cannon and raised his battle mask. "Starscream!" he called.

The flier whirled, his usual cowardice overriding the Dark Energon in his veins. "Autobots!"

Optimus took careful aim. "Stand down."

Starscream took a slight step backward, and then seemed to regain his confidence. "You stand down!" The Seeker raised his arm and launched a missile, forcing the Autobots into hiding. He laughed. "You cannot harm while Dark Energon flows through my veins!" He took aim with his second missile.

Optimus loosed a blast around the boulder he'd sheltered behind, and it landed squarely on Starscream's joint. Already damaged, not yet repaired by the Dark Energon, plasma tore his arm clean off. The Seeker stared, dumbfounded, as his limb hit the ground some yards away. For a moment, he simply stood there, and then, with a shriek pitched more like a femme, he tore over the terrain, scooped up the arm, and leapt behind a rock. "C'mon, c'mon!" He looked desperately at Skyquake's tomb. "Rise already!" It glowed with savage amethyst light, and the ground trembled, but the warrior did not rise.

"Clipped his wing!" Bulkhead readied his weaponry. "He's grounded."

The Autobots surged forward, preparing to capture, or, if Starscream refused, kill. They took up positions behind a ridge, offensive rather than defensive.

Recognizing the inevitable, Starscream activated his communicator. "This is commander Starscream, requesting emergency ground-bridge to my coordinates!" He shut it down, hoping that the bridge would come soon, hoping that Lord Megatron hadn't overheard, hoping that if he had, he would show mercy, hoping that if he did not, the end would be quick.

The Autobots advanced, Ratchet bringing up the rear. He was just beginning to open his combat interface when he heard the cry behind him.

"I can't believe you made me lose my PHONE!" Miko shrieked. The sound echoed up and down the chasm. For his part, Jack looked downright offended.

"How is this _my _fault?"

The Autobots turned, forgetting Starscream for the moment. "Oh no," Bulkhead groaned.

_Base to Optimus_, Arcee's voice came through their communicators. _The kids are missing!_

Anger managed to work its way into his voice as Optimus replied. "We have a visual. Send a ground-bridge immediently."  
-

"How is this _my_ fault?" Jack backed up slightly, Miko's anger now far eclipsing his own. He felt his heel scrape air, and gulped. Suddenly, that air split open with a crackling whoosh. He turned and saw a ground-bridge manifest, right where they'd emerged. Then he heard the sound a second time, and another ground-bridge portal appeared behind Starscream.

"Two?" Rachet gasped. Then he turned to the children, showing more concern than they'd thought possible. "You three! Into our ground-bridge, now!"

"C'mon," Jack grabbed Miko's wrist and hauled her off the rock, ignoring her protests. Raf followed.

Optimus watched as the children passed into the central tunnel, behind the curtain of light. He heard clanking from the other end of the canyon, and turned to see Starscream dive head-first into his own ground-bridge.

The steady drone of the ground-bridge's merged, escalating into an agonizing shriek. The high pitched sound threatened to overwhelm the Autobots' audio receptors. Turquoise energy streams lanced out from the portals, stretching across the canyon.

"Ratchet," Optimus cried, "What is happening?"

The medic backed away in horror. "The dueling ground-bridge portals must be feeding back on each other!"

"Miko!" Bulkhead rushed past the others. "We gotta get the kids outta there!" The Wrecker surged towards the portal. Only feet from it, an energy streamer lashed outward, hitting him in the chest and knocking him on his skidplate.

Moments later, the linked portals exploded, and the Autobots were hurled into the walls... And oblivion.  
-

Jack stumbled as the ground-bridge began to shake. He had passed through numerous times, but it had never done that before. Something had to be wrong.

Miko pulled free, seemingly unaffected by the quake. "We should go back," she told him.

"We are not dying just because you want to see an undead robot!" Jack grabbed her arm again, but she shook him off.

"We should go back, because I don't think we should be in a ground-bridge that's malfunctioning."

Jack looked over at Raf. "She's got a point," the younger boy said.

He considered it for a split second, Decepticons versus spatial distortion, and nodded. "Lets go."

They started to run back the way they came, every step seeming like an eternity. The ground-bridge tilted, shook, twisted around until they were right back where they began. Raf stopped, his eyes filled with fear. "We're trapped!" he wailed.

Jack and Miko stopped too, looking around as the vortex pulsed. Unnatural colors slashed through the sea green distortion, and suddenly, the tunnel was a room, and then a ball, and then a crossroads. The tunnels began to spin, whirling around the trio until they couldn't remember which way was which. Jack felt his stomach lurch. He'd never been big on spinning rides, like the kind in carnivals and fairs.

The tunnels slammed to a stop, the lurch taking the children off their feet. A pulsing shriek tore the air. "C'mon!" Miko got to her feet and ran into the closest tunnel. Jack and Raf had no choice but to follow.

"Miko-oh-oh!" Jack yelled, his voice echoing in the tunnel. "Wait for us-us-us!"

Whether or not she heard him over the screaming air, Miko slowed. The three of them ran on together, the tunnel seemingly endless, the shriek growing louder and louder. They ran, until the green was replaced with a sickly red, until the floor was the ceiling and back again, until they panted in exhaustion, until the noise threatened to leave them deaf, and finally, they saw sky, and rock, and leapt from the portal to the ground.

For a moment, the world seemed grey, lifeless. Mist drifted over them, muffling everthing. Slowly, they got to their feet and looked around. Slowly, the fog lifted, color returning. Slowly, the red vortex closed.

Jack looked around. They seemed to be in the exact same place as before, only at the other end. The rocky mound of Skyquake's tomb rose a short distance away, still and silent once more. "You guys okay?"

Raf tumbled upright, holding his head. "Yeah... think so."

Miko looked around. "Where's Bulkhead?" She sounded more afraid than Jack had heard before. Given this experience, he wondered if next time she'd be so keen on running off.

Jack looked again, but he saw nothing and no one. "Where are any of the Autobots?" They couldn't have disappeared.

"Maybe they _drove_ away?" Raf took off his glasses and wiped them on his shirt.

Jack was about to respond that he didn't think so, when he heard the sound of jet engines overhead. "Get down! It might be Starscream again." They dove for cover behind a rock. A moment later, the engine noises were replaced with the scrape of metal on metal. With a loud thud, the Cybertronian landed beside the tomb.

"Ah, the gravesite of the mighty Tailgate." Jack had to stifle a gasp. It wasn't Starscream's voice. And yet it was terrifyingly familiar. "So quick to reject my authority while you lived. But... as the first of my reanimated warriors... you shall bow to my command!" There came a sharp crack, like a breaking rock. Then a quiet tinkling, followed by a flash of violet light. Jack peered around the boulder and watched as the robot- it certainly _looked_ like Starscream, though a bit taller perhaps- plunged a shard of amethyst crystal into his chest. "Yesssss. The power of Dark Energon, be MINE!" The mecha errupted into violet flames. "Symbiosis! Ah ha ha hah! I can feel it!" Purple veins split the ground.

From the other end of the canyon came the whoosh of an opening ground-bridge. Jack felt a thrill run through him. Clearly, the Autobots had also bridged away. They must've gotten lost in the distortion, and now they were back to stop... Whoever it was. He felt his pulse quicken.

"Rise, Tailgate, rise!" The mecha continued to rant, and Jack felt a sense of deja-vu. He focused on him again, and began to notice subtle differences from Starscream- the frame a bit thicker, the armor more rounded, the color like mustard rather than silver. He glanced at Raf and Miko, and saw that they were looking towards the ground-bridge.

"Uh, Jack?" Raf's jaw was slack.

Following their eyes, Jack looked down the length of the chasm, and felt his heart hit his throat.

Decepticons. Decepticons were emerging from the ground-bridge, readying their weapons. Megatron. Breakdown. Knockout. Soundwave. Alone, deadly. Combined, they could decimate an entire city. It was all of the Autobots worst enemies in one place, and yet, there were no Autobots in sight. Unless...

They looked at the mech standing by the tomb, the one with Seeker wings, glowing with evil light, cackling like mad. Jack gulped as he realized why it looked so familiar, why he was so terrified, why his internal sense of wrong was going haywire.

"Holy scrap," Raf cursed. "It's Bumblebee!"


	2. Through the Looking Glass

Transformers Prime Shattered Glass

Chapter 2: Through the Looking Glass

**A/N: Surprisingly, you all seemed surprised. And for the one who said **_**Smokescreen**_** should've replaced Starscream... Yeah, I can see it. But I've got other plans for him. The Cons and Bots have switched roles- did you realize that in the entire series, there are an equal number of each faction? Not counting Predacons, of course.  
Anyway, the exchange is equal, but you may be surprised at who replaces who in some cases. Bumblebee (Bugbite, in SG) may have replaced Starscream, but Starscream does not replace Bumblebee. So, yeah.**

Alarms blared in the remains of the Harbinger- the Decepticons' refuge on this inhospitable rock. Third from its star, the only inhabited world in the system. The transport ship had been their home since they left their world, and then it had been shot down by the damnable locals, its crash site forgotten and hidden. Now, it served as their base. The Autobot monsters would never find it.

"I had hoped my growing expertise would remain purely accademic, but... I've detected a faint Dark Energon signiature, moving fast." Knockout's usually boisterous tone was much more subdued. When it came to the Blood of Unicron, every Decepticon felt the same.

"Optimus." Megatronus rose from the war-room table with a tired groan. They were all tired. Three years of fighting both their enemies and the locals took a toll.

"Where'd he find more of the bad stuff?" Airachnid stuck out her chin. The two-wheeler knew first-hand the devastation a single shard of it could do.

"Who cares?" Breakdown replied. "All that matters is what he's gonna do with it. Recruit another undead army, maybe?"

Megatronus looked thoughtful. "We can't dismiss the possibility. Particularly because Optimus seems to be headed to a familiar location." He shook his head. "Optimus has barely reawakened, and already he seems to be making up for lost time. Breakdown, Soundwave, Knockout, prepare to engage."

Soundwave and Breakdown joined their leader next to the ground-bridge entrance, but Knockout balked. "Me?"

"If we are dealing with Dark Energon, we may need your... 'expertise'," Megatronus reasoned. The medic nodded. "Airachnid-"

"Bridge operator. Got it." She seemed almost amused.

The four Decepticons gathered in front of the ground-bridge. Knockout shifted nervously; Soundwave's limbs tensed, and under his face-plate, his lone optic narrowed. Breakdown glared at the empty tunnel and cracked steam from his knuckles. Megatronus, however, remained a statue, the picture of leaderly calm. He was their figurehead, their rock. That was what it meant, to be a Prime.  
-

Megatronus strode forward as Airachnid powered up their ground-bridge. He walked steadily into the scarlet swirl, feeling the strange texture of non-space under his peds. His processor fell back into old memories. Of meeting Orion Pax. Of Cybertron's fall and their exodus. Of their arrival here, only to be assaulted. Of the last time he had seen Dark Energon, hurled by Optimus through the Autobots' space-bridge, towards their already damaged home. He recalled his anguish as he watched the dead of his world take flight, rising from the planet's surface to follow his once-friend. He recalled his feelings when that 'friend' had disappeared in the space-bridge explosion, consumed by his own greed. He had felt... nothing. Megatronus now recognized that it was because, in some part of him, he could sense that Optimus was still alive, still in painful slumber. And now he was back.

Sooner than he would have liked, he and the others emerged into a massive canyon. A familiar canyon. He brought his weaponry online, transforming his left arm into a plasma cannon. He drew his leaf-shaped blade from his back. It felt heavy, if natural, in his hand. Information flowed into his mind, old battle schematics from previous fights, and more from previous Matrix-bearers. The collective wisdom of the Primes.

The four of them continued forward, long strides taking them closer to the objective. Once in range, Megatronus' optic widened. Breakdown got it out first: "That's not Optimus!"

"Rise, Tailgate, rise!"

Indeed. It was Bugbite- but what was the Seeker doing here, with Dark Energon? Clearly he intended to raise a powerful undead warrior and challenge his cruel master's leadership. But still. Megatronus wondered how the cowardly flier had managed to steal a shard from under Optimus' olfactory sensors.

"Bugbite!" Megatronus called, loud enough for the other to hear.

The flier whirled, his usual cowardice overriding the Dark Energon in his veins. "Decepticons!"

Megatronus lowered his battle mask, hefted his arm, and took careful aim. "Stand down."

Bugbite took a slight step backward before remembering he was by no means vulnerable. "You stand down!" The Seeker launched a missile that detonated with supernatural force, hurling the Decepticons to the sides. He laughed. "You cannot harm me whilst Dark Energon flows through my veins!" He brought up his arm to launch the other missile.

Megatronus shook his head. Dust drifted slowly to the ground. Something wet- something he'd rather not identify- dripped out of his mouth. Dark Energon had drastically increased Bugbite's weapon strength. But from the look of his scratched up armor, it seemed clear he was weak. This had to be finished, quickly. Megatronus got to his peds. He sighted along his arm cannon, bringing it into alignment now...

He fired, just as Bugbite loosed the second projectile. Superheated plasma hit micro-warhead, and the two combined into an enormous fireball that melted the surface of the rocks. Megatronus dropped behind a boulder as the heat wave rolled past, but Bugbite was not so lucky. The Autobot was hurled backwards into the wall. Scorch marks covered his front. Several bits of shattered armor littered the ground like broken glass.

The Decepticons regrouped, their weapons ready. Bugbite had not yet gotten up. He only managed a pitiful sounding moan. Megatronus felt a rare sense of triumph. The death- or better still, _capture_- of Optimus' lieutenant would strike a crucial blow. Bugbite could tell them everything they needed to know about the Autobots' operations. He might even be persuaded to give it up willingly, since he seemed intent on destroying Optimus himself. Megatronus readied a breath to order them forward. A breath that caught in his throat as a small voice cried, "Bumblebee!"  
-

Jack desperately grabbed for Raf's hoodie and missed. Muttering curses, he ran after his friend. Clearly, although it looked similar, this robot with wings was not Bumblebee. It spoke. It wielded Dark Energon. It attacked without being provoked. It looked like an Autobot, but thought like a Decepticon. Whereas the Decepticons who had emerged from the ground-bridge had acted like Autobots. Jack replayed the scene in his mind, only now realizing that the vortex he'd seen had been red, not green. Red, like the one they'd jumped out of.

"Bumblebee!" Raf was now close enough that he had to pick his way around the armor pieces on the ground. "Are you okay?"

Jack almost laughed aloud. Clearly, this robot, this Not-Bumblebee, was not okay. He'd just been blown up, almost. Equally clearly, the Dark Energon in him would let him recover quickly. When that happened, Jack did not intend for him or the others to be anywhere near there.

Jack glanced back and was surprised to see Miko still hiding behind the rock. For once, she had common sense. Jack frowned. Maybe Miko had been a little too scared by this experience.

Raf had reached the strange robot. Jack knew it wasn't Bumblebee. Bumblebee had fins, not wings, and no missiles, and definately not evil-looking crimson optics. What had the Megatron-looking robot called out? Bugbite? Jack considered it, and he decided that Bugbite was an appropriate name for an evil version of the Autobot scout.

Bugbite shook his head. He seemed to have recovered enough that he could make sense of his surroundings. He didn't seem happy.

Raf slowed as the feral gleam in Bugbite's optic increased. The child trembled. "Bumblebee?" he squeaked.

For a moment, the robot regarded him . "How did you escape, slave?" His voice was a mellifluous whisper. It gave Jack chills, even without the words registering. "And what nonsense are you rambling?"

Raf backed away. "You- you're not Bumblebee."

Bugbite rose up from the crater and stretched. "Incompetence. Wait here, slaves," he commanded. "I will deal with you, once I've obliterated the Decepticons!" Jack grabbed Raf, who was muttering listlessly, limp with fear, and pulled him towards the rocks. Bugbite stepped over them. Jack got the feeling that the robot could have stepped _on_ them, and he wouldn't have cared. Raf wasn't the only one trembling.  
-

The Decepticons watched as Bugbite rose out of the crater. Humans had entered the battlefield now. It was four against four. At this distance, Megatronus could not see the collars that kept the children controlled, or the Transformium-nanite battlesuits that allowed them to fight. But they were there, hidden under the thin cloth armor that they wore.

Then, he was confused. Rather than encouraging the humans to attack, Bugbite dismissed them. Shoved them aside. Perhaps it was only the Autobot's pride, but Megatronus didn't think so. He squinted, trying to pick out tiny details. The collars... where were the collars? He realized that something was indeed different. These humans were not enslaved. They wore no collars, which meant that in all likelyhood, they wore no battlesuits either. They were vulnerable, weak. And from the way the acted towards Bugbite, it was clear that they felt no allegiance to the treacherous Autobot. Which meant... What?

Even if they weren't with the Autobots, humans were still dangerous. They would kill Decepticons because of the propaganda their fascist government released. The simple minds of the populace were overloaded with fear. These children were the enemy.

And yet he could not shake the sensation that they weren't.

In a split second, he made up his mind. "Breakdown! Knockout! You and I will keep Bugbite distracted. Soundwave, sneak around and bring the humans to safety!" Immediately, the others seemed to freeze. Never had they questioned his orders. But in this instant, it was clear they thought he was insane. He allowed himself a silent prayer that he was doing the right thing. Then: "Go! Now!"

Breakdown and Knockout made what use they could of their limited ranged weaponry, grabbing Bugbite's attention and annoying him greatly. Every impact rocked him, but they seemed like insect stings rather than blasts of concentrated star-matter. Megatronus brought his own guns to bear, positioning himself between Bugbite and Soundwave. The Decepticon scout faded into the background- literally. His steel-blue skin seemed to disappear into the rocks.

The fire fight was not much. It certainly was not as intense as the last one in this canyon. In fact, it was little more than an exchange of pot shots, a game to distract Bugbite. It would not take long for the Seeker to get bored.

Megatronus saw the children peeking out from behind the boulder. His spark ached. His optics burned. He prayed.  
-

Jack watched as the Decepticons reengaged Bugbite, all four of them laying down a barrage of fire power. At first, it didn't seem possible that the robot would survive. But after a minute, Jack realized that the Cons' sparks simply weren't into it. They weren't trying to destroy Bugbite. It was as if they only wanted to keep him distracted.

Another minute passed before he recognized that four Decepticons were now three. Soundwave was conspicuously absent. That was when he felt the claw latch onto him.

Arcee had picked him up several times to get him clear of danger. Jack realized that Soundwave wasn't crushing them. He was moving them. And a second later, he shifted forms. Not to the UAV drone they knew, but into the slim shape of a sports car. It looked vaguely like a Ferrari, but not quite. Jack couldn't be completely sure, because as Soundwave transformed, he shoved the three of them into his seats. Miko and Raf in the back, Jack himself in the front passenger. Bugbite turned at the sound of the engine, but even he wasn't fast enough to avoid getting knocked over by Soundwave's wedge-like hood. Tucked inside the alternate mode of the Decepticon, Jack glanced at Miko and Raf. Raf looked shell shocked, a bit green. Miko's eyes had changed- they'd lost their spark of adventure and now seemed to be pleading for peace. He hadn't thought anything was capable of doing that, but this situation had. He actually hoped it wasn't permanent.

A moment later, Soundwave skidded to a halt behind a boulder, and ejected his passengers. Jack felt his hands scrape on the rocks, but he figured that it wasn't that bad. He watched as Soundwave returned to robot form, and ran off to join the other Decepticons. He was puzzled. Nothing that was happening here made sense, and yet it did. The Decepticons weren't the bad guys here. But if Decepticons were good, what was Bugbite?

Speaking of...

Bugbite had gotten up. As the Decepticons neared, a red ground-bridge opened behind him, and he backed into it. "You're too late!" His softly mysterious voice sounded positively creepy. "My warrior wakes. Why bother staying, when he will destroy you for me!"

The bridge slid closed with a hiss. The Decepticons paused and looked at the pile of rocks that Jack had thought were Skyquake's tomb. But Skyquake was a Decepticon...

"Tailgate," the one that looked like Megatron murmured. "All of you, get behind me!"

They needed no encouragement as the earth split open. Violent amethyst light poured out, along with a nauseating moan. Jack watched, horrified, as a large taloned hand that glowed purple emerged from the ground. It was followed by a white shelled arm, and another arm, and finally an entire ivory body that oozed malice and violet light, screaming like a tortured soul. The Terrorcon zeroed in on Not-Megatron as the biggest threat. With a viscious snarl, it lowered its horned head, and charged.


	3. Snake-Eyes

Transformers Prime Shattered Glass

Chapter 3: Snake-Eyes

**A/N: Such wonderful commentary! Reviews like I've been getting are great, and although I've got many good ideas, I encourage you to tell me what you would like to read. Mean time, this is the next chapter, there won't be many surprises, but...**

The last time Megatronus had fought Tailgate (while he was alive), he'd hoped to the end that the stubbornly loyal Autobot would see reason and turn. Now, the undead monstrosity that existed in Tailgate's body couldn't understand any of those concepts. And so, there was no reason for Megatronus to hold back.

"All of you, get behind me!" he bellowed. He hoped the humans understood.

The Terrorcon-formerly-known-as-Tailgate turned towards him and snarled. Much of its face was torn, revealing delicate circuitry and gears. It lowered its head and charged like a Gigantian Steer.

Megatronus had been planning on engaging the beast alone, letting the others take the humans to safety. So he was surprised when Breakdown dove forward and slammed a hammer into Tailgate's side. The blow sent him flying across the chasm, through a rock formation, and into a wall. If it'd been truly alive, that would have killed it, but the thing simply rolled its joints back into alignment and charged again. Though not as large as Megatronus, its strength had been enhanced by the Dark Energon, and Bugbite's mind was behind every move.

As if to confirm that thought, when Megatronus swiped at Tailgate, it dropped under his arm and slammed into his chest. Horns met metal, and two punctures appeared in Megatronus' armor. They quickly filled with energon. That made him angry. He channeled his rage- so much rage- and put it all into a single blow to the neck that tore Tailgate's head off.

And _still_ it did not die. Blindly, it stumbled in a circle, finally settling on a trajectory that would take it towards Breakdown. Megatronus didn't bother letting it get that far. He hefted his blade like a lance, and drove it forward into the headless undead's spark chamber. There was a satisfying _crunch_ as the Cybranium blade sheared through layers of Transformium plating. Then he withdrew it, and Tailgate's again-lifeless body slumped to the ground.

As he wiped the Dark Energon from his blade, Megatronus watched the three humans. They appeared shocked, though if he had to guess he would say that it had nothing to do with the battle. That struck him as odd, since the control collars that the Autobots placed on their slaves inhibited all higher functions, even memory. To them, the battle should have been a horror show. But they seemed... calm. Shocked, and yes, terrified, but calm.

There were two males, one appearing to be around sixteen, the other perhaps twelve or thirteen, and one female, around fifteen. Young, for Autobot slaves. The youngest male wore glasses, and the female's hair was styled. Again, odd. Slaves usually had no physical health problems, and individuality was stamped out.

Of the three, the older male appeared the least afraid. In fact, he seemed to be waiting.

Megatronus put up his weapons and signaled the other Decepticons to do the same. He knelt in front of the humans. The younger two backed up, although the female not quite as far. "Are you unharmed?" he asked.  
-

Jack watched as the headless robot slumped into the ground, purple liquid draining from the hole in its chest. The Not-Megatron slowly turned around. It studied the three children while cleaning Dark Energon from its sword. When it- no, _he_ Jack reminded himself- knelt in front of them, Raf and Miko drew back. Jack stood his ground. A single blue optic gazed back. In place of the other was a crude metal patch.

"Are you unharmed?" the Decepticon asked.

Jack almost smiled. 'Unharmed'. Not 'all right'. The Decepticon understood the difference, and knew that even if the humans weren't injured, they were most certainly not all right. "Yes," Jack told him. He said nothing else. Really, what was there to say?

After a moment the Decepticon seeemed to recognize that. "I am Megatronus Prime, leader of the Decepticons." Jack nodded, though the statement sounded ridiculous. A Prime? Leading Decepticons? "We are a race of intelligent mechanical beings, from a distant planet called Cybertron." So there it was. The words, so familiar, yet so strange.

"We know what you are," Jack asserted. "Why did you save us?"

Megatronus hesitated. Jack saw something resembling fear in that lone optic. Of him? "I cannot be sure." The Prime's voice trembled. "I know only that, in your presence, I felt no malice, no enemy. And clearly, Bugbite was not your ally."

Raf spoke up for the first time. "Why do you keep calling him that?"

"What?"

Raf's voice was hard. "His name is Bumblebee, not Bugbite. He's my friend. What did you do to him?"

Megatronus looked the small boy over. "I have done nothing to that Autobot beyond self defense. But if you _are_ his... _friend_, then you are no friend of ours." A bitter edge entered the Decepticon's voice, making him sound more like the Megatron they knew. "The only name I have ever known him by is Bugbite. Perhaps he has decieved you with that other name. Autobots are known for their tricks."

"Tricks?" Now it was Miko's turn, and Jack had never been happier for her to butt in. "Dude, you're a _Decepticon_. You've got _deceive_ right in your name!"

Megatronus suddenly reared up to his full height. The sun was behind him, casting shadows that blacked out his entire front. "That is not how we recieved our name!" His voice broke, and just as quickly as he had stood, he knelt back down. In the momentary silence, Jack noted the other Decepticons standing at a respectful distance, eyeing the humans like they might attack Megatronus.

"Look, we don't understand. Something just is- isn't right. Miko here snuck into a ground-bridge to watch the Autobots fight Terrorcons, and then when we got to the other side there was some kind of malfunction, and..." Jack allowed his voice to trail off. Megatronus' gaze was intense.

"So you admit to being in contact with Autobots." The edge was back. "You admit that you kept company of them, our sworn enemies!"

Jack swallowed. "Well... yes."

"Then give me one good reason not to kill you, why I shouldn't crush the life out of you right now!" Megatronus slammed a fist into a boulder, sending rock splinters flying.

"Whoa! Wait!" Jack put himself between the Decepticons and the others. "Where we come from, Autobots are the good guys!"

That gave him pause. Megatronus lowered his fist. "You mean, from your vantage?"

"What? No. From everybody's. Look, where we're from, Autobots protect humans. Decepticons are the ones trying to take over the planet."

"Yeah!" Miko chimed in. "Plus, only Decepticons use Dark Energon. You raised a whole army of zombies!"

Jack was surprised when Knockout stepped up. He had last seen the vain robot driving away with one door missing, leaking transmission fluid onto the desert sand. Everything Jack knew said that this Decepticon was a coward. And yet now he confronted them, and interrupted Megatronus.

"Sacrilege! No Decepticon would ever touch the Blood of Unicron. Least of all our leader!"

"Knockout," Megatronus spoke softly. He placed on hand on the physician's shoulder. "I may have an idea of what has happened." He turned to the humans. "What do you know of quantum mechanics? Multiverse theory?"

Jack blinked. Glancing at the others, he saw that Miko looked bored, which meant that she had no clue and was covering, and even Raf looked stumped. "Umm. Nothing?"

Megatronus had a distant look in his optic. His voice sounded almost wistful. "I was once a mathematician," he said. "I wrote ground-breaking theorems on space-bridge technology. My work helped to create the ground-bridges. Before the fall of our world, I stumbled across an abnormality, one that evidenced in favor of a disputed theory. That there could be more than one universe."

He refocused on the humans. "I theorized that, under certain circumstances, a space-bridge could be forced to go beyond our plane of existance, and tunnel into an alternate dimension. There could be infinite other versions of our planet, places of boundless opportunity, each one different. One where Cybertron was an organic world. One where our system was consumed by a black hole. One where I was able to make a deal with Sentinel before he was killed. One where-"

"One where Autobots are good and Decepticons are evil." Raf's normally timid voice now sounded tough. "That's what you're getting at. When the ground-bridge glitched, we crossed over. We're in a parallel universe."  
-

Megatronus had to admire them. As little as they were, these humans were strong. They accepted the youngster's theory with stoicism. "Okay," the older male said. "How do we get home?"

"Who says _we_ want to?" The female- Miko?- now appeared fully confident. Her voice carried in it a challenge that instantly set Megatronus' denta on edge. And yet he could not help but applaud her courage.

"Miko, we can't just stay here. Didn't you hear what Bugbite said? He called us _slaves_." There was both fire and patience in the male's eyes. Like he was used to dealing with Miko's insubordination. "The bad guys have already won."

"Actually, they haven't," Knockout put in. "Also, how long have you two been dating? Because you bicker like an old married couple."

Instantly they sprang apart, each offering various protests. Megatronus stifled a laugh. There was clear tension between them, and they were certainly compatible. Even if they refused to accept it. "Enough. Knockout is correct about one thing. The Autobots have not yet taken control of this world, though that is certainly not through our efforts. Long before we arrived, the local government was at war with them. Large portions of this world have been burned by thermo-nuclear weapons, scarred by plasma rays. At first we thought that they would accept our aid, but we were wrong. Now, we are engaged in constant guerilla warfare on two fronts."

"Let us talk to them." The younger male stepped up. "They'd listen to humans, and they'd understand that you're not an enemy."

Breakdown snorted. "Oh, they understand all right. They just don't care. To them, we're all targets. An infestation. Meant to be crushed. Like bugs." He clenched a powerful fist.

"Stop." Megatronus waved the others back. To the humans: "The people of this world are frightened. Their government has its own agenda, and uses fear to keep them ignorant. We hide, to protect both ourselves and the citizenry. The Autobots stroll through cities, raining destruction. They capture hapless civilians and force them to fight, controlling them like puppets. There is no shortage of fear."

After a pause, he asked a necessary question. "What are your names?"

The older male started briefly, as though he only just realized that they hadn't introduced themselves. "I'm Jack. This is Miko, and Raf."

"Jack, Miko, Raf." Megatronus looked at them each in turn. "I promise that we will do everything in our power to keep you safe and find you a way to return home. This is no place for you to live. But first, we need to end this war with the Autobots. Until then, we will be unable to spare the resources to help."

After a silent exchange with his friends, Jack met Megatronus' gaze. "We'll help you. We know the Autobots. Good or evil, some things don't change."

He nodded. "We will be grateful for your assistance."

Miko shouldered past the two boys. "Great. Now can we maybe get some food, and a bed, and especially a toilet? 'Cause I really gotta-" Suddenly, she raised her arm and pointed over Megatronus' shoulder. "LOOK OUT!"

Megatronus swiveled quickly, his optic sending a series of images too fast for his processor to handle. He was able to get a few quick flashes: purple light; a twisted hulk in corroded armor; a familiar face plate. It looked almost like... like Skyquake. Airachnid's former partner. But that was impossible. He was dead, murdered on Cybertron.

Before Megatronus could fully comprehend the spectacle, he was airborne. The blow he never saw sent him across the canyon, until his head cracked against the rock. His vision went black.

**A/N: Ha hah! Not as lengthy as the other two chapters, but it took longer 'cause I couldn't get my head in the right place to write the exchange between the humans and Decepticons. Finally done though. I added a few more hints of the past. Soon enough I'll include a comprehensive history, but I figure, why rush it? I'm also gonna add in elements from Age of Extinction, **_**because I can**_**.**

**Some of you may be wondering about the title for the chapter. I'm not totally sure why I picked the name, but I know that when you roll two ones with dice- 'snake eyes'- its bad. And this chapter contained a whole lot of bad.**

**Oh, and, if it hasn't already, I would like to find a way to trademark the name 'Cybranium'. I think that would be the perfect name for the harder metal that the Transformers use in their melee weapons.**


	4. Schism

Transformers Prime Shattered Glass

Chapter 4: Schism

**A/N: I admit, I had to Google Cybranium too. I was surprised to get only two hits, but that just means that if I can get in contact with a patent office, I may actually be able to get it. We'll see.**

**Sorry about the wait, my computer's being a witch to me.**

**I decided to mix things up a bit in this chapter. Have fun!**

Miko figured that this was the strangest, most wonderful day yet. Okay, she forgot her phone, and the whole ground-bridge deal was a bit unsettling, and she _really_ had to take a pee- but come on! A parallel universe? That rocked. She'd got to watch Megatron (Megatronus, whatever) take that zombie-Bot apart. And now she would get to see _another_ undead battle.

It took her brain a moment to actually realize what the shape behind the Decepticon leader was. At least she'd noticed it. Jack, Mister 'I'm-so-perfect, I-get-to-go-on-missions-with-Arcee', did not. Raf had an excuse, since he was the shortest. Her shout had been too late though, and she winced as she watched Megatronus sail across the canyon. His helm slammed into the wall with a sickening crunch. He didn't get up.

The other Cons surged forward to protect their fallen leader, weapons out and hot. None of them bothered to shove Miko or Jack or Raf out of the way. She liked that. Front row seats!

Across the way, Soundwave had wrapped a tentacle around the Terrorcon's throat. It reached up and clawed the appendage away, but Soundwave simply launched a roundhouse kick that sent it reeling. Before it could recover, Breakdown slid in with his hammer and nailed the zombie in its ugly face. He and Soundwave began to knock the creature between them, hammer, kick, hammer, kick.

Miko glanced over and saw that Jack and Raf were focused on the Cybertronian tennis match of death. The zombie, who she now realized must be the one that Starscream had been trying to raise- Skyraker? No, Skyquake. That was it. Skyquake was looking none worse for the pounding it was receiving. Megatronus still hadn't gotten up. It occured to her that without him, the fight might turn deadly for one of the Decepticons. She had to help. But how?

Miko allowed her gaze to roam over the canyon. Back in Tokyo, her parents had put her through everything from archery to xylophone lessons. She had a lot of skills that the others didn't know about, most of which wouldn't help. But she had taken a few martial arts lessons. Her parents had wanted her to be able to defend herself.

Okay, they didn't have it in their heads that she would someday be fighting giant robots from another planet, but still.

She needed a weapon. Rocks? The ones she could lift wouldn't do squat. Maybe she could angle Megatronus' sword against a boulder and trick Skyquake into skewering itself. As soon as she looked at the blade, she knew it wouldn't work. The thing was the size of a canoe. She might be able to drag it a little, or flip it, but no way could she put it up a rock.

Skyquake managed to grab Breakdown's head, mostly by accident, and hurled him into Knockout. Neither got up.

Desperately, Miko cast around for a sharp stick, a smaller sword, a... Missile?

That's what it looked like anyhow. It was lying in between Megatronus and Skyquake, glinting in the sun. She glanced at the fight, then ran up. It _was_ a missile, and a big one, and it was attached to a large, rather beat up, arm. Thinking back- was it really only about an hour ago? Less? Thinking back, she remembered that Starscream had lost an arm to Optimus. She'd thought he'd taken it with him, but if Skyquake could end up here, anything was possible. She tried moving it.

Well. Maybe not_ anything_.

Miko ran back over to the boulder. "Help me out!" she whispered urgently.

"With what?" Jack hadn't taken his eyes off the fight until she spoke.

Quickly, she pointed out the missile. She spelled out her idea, and she could tell from Jack's expression that it was a good one. He just didn't like it 'cause she thought of it first.

"But I need your help to do it," she finished.

"One of these days," he muttered, and she knew he was thinking something like, _She's gonna get us all killed_. She had to refrain from sticking out her tongue at him, which she figured would not help her case. He looked at Raf, who nodded. "All right."

Together, the three of them scuttled over the open rock face to the dead arm. Miko showed Jack and Raf where to push, and with all three of them, it rolled. Carefully, she went around and lined up the missile tube with their target.

Knockout had extricated himself out from under Breakdown, and was repeatedly stabbing Skyquake in the joints with a device that looked like a cattle prod. Each time it hit, there was a snap and a bright flash, and the Terrorcon would screech. Dancing between its limbs, Soundwave landed blow after blow that did nothing at all. Soundwave wasn't weak, but Skyquake was in another league all together. As Miko watched, a charcoal-colored, cat-like shape the size of an old Vespa motor-scooter detached from the rocks and struck at Skyquake's legs. Purple lines- claw marks?- emerged.

"One more push." Somehow, her voice was calm. They all heaved the arm sideways, pushing with everything they had. When Miko sighted it again, it was perfect. Then she realized something. "How do we fire this thing?"

Jack looked at her. She looked at him. As one, they both looked at Raf.

"Uh..." He appeared to be thinking hard. "I think... Starscream did something with his fingers. He pointed?"

Miko leapt down and grabbed the razor sharp index finger. The slick metal cut into her own fingers, but she couldn't lift it. She heaved again. Nothing. "No!" she cried, unable to stand that all of it was for nothing. In frustration, she kicked the finger. It snapped backward, like the hand was clenching.

The missile ignited with a roar, flying forwards and knocking them back. Miko had lined it up for a head shot, but the missile didn't hit Skyquake's head. Maybe it was the wind, or gravity, or maybe the missile was just flawed, but it arched downward. Like it had eyes, it lanced into Skyquake's back, and detonated.  
-

Knockout was getting tired. Oh, not physically. He might be a medic, but that didn't mean he was a complete wuss. He loved the thrill of battle, and every time his energon prod made contact, he felt a rush. He would gladly engage a hundred Autobots, just for the satisfaction of beating all of them. No, he was getting tired of this situation in general. Every time he finished getting the scratches buffed out of his paint, a brand new gouge was ripped in. For Primus' sake, was it too much to ask to go a _week_ with clear skin?

Angry, he pushed the prod into Skyquake's neck and held it there until the device overloaded. There was a sharp crack, and the end split away. Now Knockout held a very pretty and very useless stick. Great.

Reluctantly, he extended his surgical saw. He hated using it, because when he did, the extension process rubbed a layer of polish off of his parts. They were nearly impossible to get to, and when he transformed, the mess was super noticable. Knockout lashed out at Skyquake, tearing the delicate servos of its arm. For a moment the limb swung loosely. Then it disconnected fully and dropped to the ground. It twitched, then flipped over. The fingers scuttled like crab legs, and the arm disappeared into rock shadows. That was creepy.

Knockout paused for only a second to watch the disembodied hand. That second was all it took. The next time the positron flow through his cortex made sense, he wished it didn't. Pain radiated from every extremity, and small wonder. He had been slammed into the rock so hard, he'd left a Knockout-shaped impression. Slowly, he realized that he could move, and he tugged each limb free. Knockout dropped to the ground, cautious of alerting the Terrorcon. It must've hit him while he was focused on the hand.

A wave of dizziness struck him, feedback from electron interference. Knockout fell to his knees. His vision swam. An image coellesced: a Cybertronian hand, scarred, rusted. Skyquake's.

"Raaaagh!" Knockout yelled, pushing himself backwards on his skidplate. It took his a moment to realize that the hand was still attached to a body. A body that was very much dead. There was a gaping pit in its back. The spinal strut was exposed, the T-cog was mangled, and the spark chamber was empty.

"Wha?" Knockout looked over as Breakdown groggily got to his peds. The bruiser looked no less confused than he was.

Soundwave was lying on his side, holding his head. The scout's Mini-Con, Ravage, was delicately lapping the energon his master's wounds.

At a glance, Knockout realized that none of them were injured seriously. He could also tell that it wasn't any of them who had taken out Skyquake.

A glint caught his optic. A flash of sunlight off metal. Knockout walked over slowly. Megatronus lay further off, still unconscious. But his life signal was strong. He would be fine.

The light glinted again, still in the same spot. Knockout moved faster. He could see that it was an arm, not Skyquake's; this arm was thinner, and much smaller. It had long, sharp talons. It also had a port for a missile to rest on. That port was scorched.

The three human children lay on the ground nearby. Two of them appeared to be helping the third. The female, Miko. Red liquid was pooring from her hands onto the dusty rock. The males used strips of cloth from their shirts to cover her hands. The liquid stopped flowing. Knockout realized that the red was human blood. She'd been hurt, somewhat badly. His optics could barely make out a patch of red on the index talon of the arm. She'd cut her hand doing something to it.

Electronic synapses fired. The connection was made.

The humans had used this dead arm to send a missile at Skyquake. A missile that had detonated right next to its spark chamber. They had destroyed the Terrorcon, saving not only themselves but the Decepticons as well.

He almost laughed. These puny fleshbags? They were mere carbon based lifeforms. They had a life expectancy of a hundred years, tops. The strongest of their species could lift only a thousand pounds or so, and for only a few seconds. Yet these three children had saved them?

Great. The pets were useful. Now Megatronus would definately keep them. They'd be in the base 24/7, always underped and getting into everything.

Great.

Knockout stepped over them. Megatronus's vitals were spiking. He was coming around.

"What happened?" The Prime's voice was raspy.

"A second Terrorcon, hit you from behind. It was taken care of. No biggie." No way Knockout was going to tell him about the fleshies if he could avoid it.

"Are the humans safe?"

"Er- yes."

Megatronus slowly got to his peds. He looked over the canyon, and then began to walk towards the others. Knockout trailed.

The Prime stopped at the humans. "Are you all right?" he asked them.

Knockout tuned his audio receptors to maximum. Damn the humans and their small voices. Jack was the one to respond.

"-'re fine. Miko cut her hands trying to get the missile to fire, but thats all."

Scrap.

Megatronus glanced at Knockout, then turned to look at Skyquake's remains. He wasn't blind. Minus an optic, but not blind. He knew. "Thank you," he told them. "You may have saved lives today. Mine included."

Oh, please.

Knockout wanted to gag. Sadly, without a gastrointestinal system, it was impossible. He couldn't vomit either, and that was the best way he could've expressed his feelings. He settled for a derisive snort.

The other Decepticons gathered. It was time to go. Megatronus spoke into the communicator. "Airachnid, open the ground-bridge."

Knockout noticed that Jack flinched as soon as he heard. What was that about?

After a moment, the red vortex spun open.  
-

Miko regretted grabbing the talon. Her hands hurt like hell. Jack had given her hell. And she still had to pee like hell, which was going to be hard with her hands all bandaged.

Plus side, everybody was alive, the zombie was dead again, and now she got to see the inside of the Decepticon base. Sweet!

The first thing she noticed was the smell. It wasn't a bad smell. But it definately wasn't something to wear as a perfume. It was like motor oil and metal shavings, with a hint of ozone. It made her think of her dad's garage. Home.

Then there were the noises. The steady clanking of the Cons' feet on metal floor, the gurgle of energon in pipes. The buzzing of florescent- or something similar- lighting. It was like a different kind of home: relaxing in Omega Outpost with Jack and Bulkhead and the others.

Finally, the curtain of red light shimmered away. It took her eyes a moment to adjust. Once they did, her mind blanked. _Floor_, she thought,_ meet my jaw_. It was the most singularly awesome thing she'd ever seen. Yet. _Why is is that everything Autobot seems so much cooler when done by Decepticons? And the other way around?_

The room was easily the size of an airplane hangar, and she could see corridors and catwalks leading to smaller areas. On each side, an enormous doorway opened into more rooms. The walls were blue-black metal, made of interlocking scales. In between each scale was a turquoise shine. A massive table occupied the room center, metal carved into the shape of a Decepticon sigil. Adorning the walls were video screens and computer stations, each one displaying a hundred things Miko had no idea what they were. A shorter, purple robot with a feminine frame stood in front of the nearest one. When the last Con was through the ground-bridge, she pulled a lever. The vortex shut slowly.

The Decepticons spread out around the table. They sank into padded chairs the size of dump trucks. Megatronus remained standing.

"Airachnid," he said to the femme, "I would like you to meet Jack, Miko, and Raf."

Miko looked at Airachnid and immediately felt a twinge. She'd heard Jack's account of their world's Airachnid. She was evil, maybe even more than Megatron or Starscream. Airachnid would kill and torture for the fun of it. This version of her didn't seem all that different from his description. Her armor was a bit rounded, and her optics were golden, not violet. But those optics had a cruel look to them, a bitter edge. Maybe this femme wouldn't gut them for fun. But if they got in her way? She'd step on them, and feel no guilt.

"More humans?" Her voice was throaty, almost sensual. "You've got to be kidding me."

"They have proven their worth," he responded simply.

She looked at each of them, and her gaze seemed to settle on Jack. Miko felt a different twinge, one she immediatly squashed. This was not the time or the place for those feelings to pop up. Raf came to her rescue, albeit unknowingly.

"Where are we?"

"The Harbinger," Knockout called. "Our ship. Try not to break it, anymore than your kind already have."

Miko looked up at Megatronus, who sighed. "Forgive Knockout. He's always been a bit... hostile towards humans. He built the Harbinger, and was extremely upset by its destruction."

"What happened?" Jack sounded genuinely curious.

It was Breakdown who answered. He was leaning back, feet on the table, arms folded. "We came in to the atmosphere broadcasting every kind of warm welcome we could. We got one in return. It was as warm as a sun."

Airachnid cast a disapproving look towards the brute. "That's his long-ass way of saying they hit us with a nuclear weapon. Broke our ship in two."

Miko was bit shocked. She'd never heard an Autobot or a Decepticon use human profanity before. On the other hand, why shouldn't they?

Raf was casting nervous looks everywhere. "Should we be wearing radiation suits?"

"Probably." Breakdown yawned. "Lemme know if you start sprouting extra fingers or toes. I heard that happens sometimes."

"He's joking." Knockout reappeared, looking a bit irked. "Radiation hurts us, too. We cleaned it up so we could have our base. On a side note, we have a visitor. Human."

Jack looked at Megatronus sideways. "I thought the government hated you guys?"

The Prime nodded. "I suspect our visitor is not from the government. There is a human we trust, whom we have fought alongside. He is the leader of a revolutionary group, fighting the oppression.

"His name is Silas."

**A/N: Okay, who didn't see that coming? I know at least one reviewer thought of it. Also, I want to include elements from the series, but it won't go episode by episode. I'll be sticking them in a blender.**

**I have a few ideas, but I want reader input. I think that it will be that much better if my readers contribute something. So my first question is this:**

**Which relics/ items from the series should I include? So far, I have:**

**1) the polarity gauntlet  
2) red energon  
3) the prototype robot from 'Nemesis Prime', to be renamed Galvatron and shaped like Megatronus, not Optimus  
4) the Forge of Solus Prime**

**Which others would you guys like to see?**


	5. Shock

Transformers Prime Shattered Glass

Chapter 5: Shock

**A/N: Ya know, I would hate to think I was giving my readers too much credit, but really. I thought the question was clear, but it looks like I'm gonna have to spell it out for you:**

**The list at the end was not for you to choose from. That list is what I already plan on using. I want you to add to it. Thank you to the ONE person who actually sent me an idea.**

**Here is the current list:**

**1) the polarity gauntlet  
2) red energon  
3) the prototype robot from 'Nemesis Prime', to be renamed Galvatron and shaped like Megatronus, not Optimus  
4) the Forge of Solus Prime  
5) the Requiem Blaster instead of the Star Saber**

**On that, please enjoy this next chapter.**

"Silas? The leader of MECH?" Jack couldn't help the surprise in his voice. There was no way he should still be surprised at anything. He'd seen undead alien robots, good guys who looked like bad guys, bad guys who looked like good guys, and the inside of an alien space ship, all in less than an hour. Words like surprise weren't even adequate. But his brain was still somewhere around 'undead alien robot'. Until it caught up, he would continue to be surprised.

No less than the Decepticons, it seemed. "You know of them?" Megatronus sounded suspicious.

"Erm- yeah. In our world, they're a terrorist group. They want to rule the planet, or something."

"I see."

Nothing more was forthcoming, but Jack figured that it didn't matter. There wasn't much else to say. So he took the time to look over their surroundings. The chamber they were in seemed to be a sort of central hub. Passages of various heights and widths branched outward, into rooms that matched. He figured that there had been Cybertronians of all sizes at one point. Some of them barely larger than humans.

He avoided looking at Airachnid. It wasn't just that she reminded him of that horror filled day in the woods. He wasn't afraid anymore. It was the way her optics lingered on him. He could feel them, even now, burning like ice. A hot fire was lit behind them, and inside, a soul was ablaze. Airachnid's mind was a bag of cats. Jack wondered if Megatronus knew she was crazy.

Somehow, he doubted it.

Breakdown and Knockout, at least, were safe. They pretty much looked the same, sounded the same as usual. Well, maybe a little nicer. They were gruff, but not overly mean.

Soundwave stood apart from the group. He, too, wasn't much different from the Con they knew. Tall, thin. No face, only a visor. No talking.

Jack was about to inquire about getting something to eat when he heard a portal slide open. Instinctively, he ducked behind Breakdown's leg. The first time he'd met Agent Fowler, the guy had been a grade-A scrap brain. Silas being Silas, Jack figured this would be worse.

"Three earthquakes, 25 aftershocks, a state of emergency, and, oh yes, reports of _strange lights in the sky_. Anything you want to tell me, _Prime_?"

Yep.

"We have the situation under control." Megatronus' voice was calculating.

Silas leaned over a railing. "Is that why satellites picked up gamma bursts _before_ the fight even started? You've asked me to trust you, and I have. All of MECH's intel is yours. All I ask, is that you give me the same honesty in return." He raised an eyebrow. "So what happened."

Megatronus looked down at Jack. Optics and eyes locked. Jack nodded, and the Prime nodded back. "Silas, there is someone I would like you to meet."

Jack stepped out. Raf and Miko slowly emerged from behind the giant table. Together, they stood below Silas' perch. Jack gazed upwards, unblinking. He watched the man's eyes widen, almost imperceptably.

Then Miko opened her mouth. "Hiya!"

"Uh... Hey."

Megatronus crouched behind them, protectively. "Silas, this is Jack, Miko, and Raf. They're... not from around here."  
-

_The portal closed behind him. Even at this distance, he could feel the power surging from his warrior. _Come_, he thought. _Do my bidding_. The warrior charged the enemy, its ferocity unmatched. He guided it under the blade, and attacked. Pain registered but was not felt. The link would not allow it. _ATTACK_, he commanded. The warrior's senses were dark, but the way was clear. It lurched forward, ravenous, raging-_

CRUNCH.

_The power died. The warrior was gone. He growled in frustration. Useless. The whole plan was useless._

_He looked up. The fight had seemed like hours, when in reality it was mere seconds. He rose to his peds, feeling cool, familiar metal. Across the way, an Omnibot stared at him. Its visor allowed no emotion, but he could sense its amusement._

_"Not a word of this," he threatened, grabbing the drone by its throat, "To anyone." It nodded, and he released. The drone skittered away. Once it was gone, he reached into his chest cavity. For a moment, he felt nothing. Then his fingers found their target. He tugged, and the shard came loose. "Dark Energon," he muttered. "A waste of time."_

_Bugbite dropped the shard into a hidden alclove, before making his way to the med bay._  
-

"A parallel universe?" Silas could have sounded more incredulous, but it would've been tough. The scepticism in his eyes was hardened. This was a warrior who had seen too much disillusionment to believe.

Jack could relate. He had seen too much not to believe.

"This has to be a trick," he went on. "Have you searched them for tracking devices?"

Jack glanced at Miko. She rolled her eyes, then poofed her cheeks and tugged her ears. He stifled the laugh. This was so not the time.

Knockout seemed indignant. "The ship is shielded. The signal would never get out. Besides, the computers would've detected a bug the instant they arrived."

"Unless it was inactive," Silas countered. "Once they step outside, the enemy rains fire."

"Silas." Megatronus met the human's gaze. "They saved out lives."

Silas' eyes were ice. "Classic. They earn your trust to gain entry."

"Hey!" Jack surprised himself by stepping forwards. "Can you guys, I dunno, not talk about us like we're not here?"

"You shouldn't be," Silas snarled.

"Exactly." That shut him up. Jack pressed on. "We should be at home, munching popcorn, watching a movie. Instead, we're stuck here. We want to leave. We can't. Not until this war is over. So unless you can pull an interdimensional transporter out of your-"

Miko clamped her hand over his mouth. "What he means is, we're just trying to help. You know, kick some tailpipe? Then we'll go."

Jack realized he'd almost gone too far. A flush of heat rose to his cheeks, but he spoke evenly. "We have no way of convincing you. But you have to trust us. Take a leap of faith, and hope everything comes out all right."

Silas was silent for a moment. "And if I do? Then what?" He spoke slowly.

Raf piped up, for the first time since Megatronus had contradicted him about Bugbite. "We help you to destroy the Autobots. Every. Single. One."

A thin smile crept over Silas' lips.  
-

_"How did this happen?" The Doctor was shocked. A first in Bugbite's memory. Usually, the Doc was the one shocking. And prodding. And tearing._

_"Obviously, our _master_ did more damage than you previously thought. I was walking the corridors, when my armor started falling off. With the skill you seem to have, I'm lucky my spark didn't simply drop to the floor."_

_The Doctor bristled, and seemed about to object, when he thought better. He sighed. "I will fix the damage. But I insist you stay on this berth until I say otherwise. Understand?"_

_Bugbite considered. He had no further ideas for subterfuge. Optimus would not be expecting him to emerge for some time. It would give him time to plan. "All right."_

_The Doctor beamed. "Excellent! And while I have you here, I've been thinking your equipment could use an upgrade. How do you feel about a Quantum Field Disruptor? I've been wanting to try it."_

_Bugbite closed his optics. "No, Ratchet, I don't want new weapons. Just fix this hole in my chest and get me out of here!"_

_The Doctor turned with a snort. Bugbite opened one optic. The Doc was typing on a keystand, readying anesthetic. "Ah, perhaps you could do something for me, after all."_

_Ratchet turned, his optics flashing excitement. "No upgrades!" Bugbite snarled. "I need you to check the labor logs. Then, maybe I'll think about the Field Disruptor."_

_"What do you need me to check for?"_

_Bugbite angrily thought of the battle. Of lying in the crater. Their faces. "Three humans," he said. "Jasper detail."_

_"All right."_

_"Jackson Darby, Miko Nakadai, and Rafael Esquival."_  
-

Three hours. That was how long it took for Silas to radio MECH, fly equipment out, double and triple check it for bugs, and install it in the smaller rooms to make living quarters. By the end of that time, Miko was dancing. Another ten minutes, Jack was afraid she might have peed herself. And she wasn't the only one. Once the excitement wore off, bodily functions caught up.

His mind was caught up, too. He was ready.

They gathered in the Hub. Soundwave had gently lifted the three of them up onto the table. Silas had elected to remain on the balconey, but had provided three chairs. The Decepticons sat in the dump truck sized thrones.

For an hour, Megatronus outlined the events since the Cons' arrival. How they'd cleaned up the radiation from the area, and settled in the Harbinger. How they witnessed MECH engaging the Autobots, and had gone to help, earning them allies. How Optimus Rex, as he called himself, had brought Dark Energon to Earth, and had tried to raise an undead army. How Optimus almost died, only to be resurrected. And how, detecting the Dark Energon signal, they had rushed to the canyon, not knowing what awaited.

He told them of the Autobots' ship, The Ark, stolen before it could be used to evacuate Cybertron. He showed them the Bots that were currently on Earth:

Optimus Rex, their cruel leader.

Bugbite, the ambitious second in command.

Their communications chief, Ultra Magnus, who's spy drones missed nothing.

The mad Doctor, Ratchet, and his brutal protector, Bulkhead. Miko started to cry when the images of Bulkhead were shown. He was ripping Decepticons apart with his bare hands, a look of cruel delight on his face.

And of course, the army of Omnibots. Drones with limited intelligence, that would follow orders at the cost of their own life.

Jack was relieved but almost disappointed that Arcee wasn't on the list. He was curious, but he didn't want to know what his guardian was here. Knowing had almost shattered Raf and Miko.

When the briefing was over, Jack didn't know what to think. He'd thought that they could help the Decepticons. He'd thought that, with the Cons seeming so like the versions from their world, he would know the Autobots, too. But now... It all felt wrong.

There was silence for a minute, apart from Miko's sniffling. She was trying to dry her eyes, and not having much luck. Finally, Raf spoke. "Are there any other Autobots out there? What about Wheeljack?" Miko looked up at the mention of her Wrecker friend.

It was Airachnid who replied. "I can't be sure. But when I last saw him, Wheeljack was stumbling blindly through a space-bridge that was about to explode. That was right before Starscream and I joined Megatronus' crew. I don't know if he survived."

Miko looked crestfallen. Raf nodded. He, at least, looked like he actually had a thought. "In our world, Bulkhead and Wheeljack were best friends. If we could somehow exploit that, maybe trick Bulkhead into meeting somewhere..."

Miko looked offended. "Dude, how dumb do you think Bulkhead is? He would never fall for a trick like that. Tell him, Jack."

She looked at him expectantly. He didn't know what to think. He had no other ideas, and honestly, it sounded like a good idea. So he turned to Megatronus. "Could it be done?"

The Prime looked uncertain. "We have Autobot voice signiatures on file. Soundwave could try to form an artificial print. But it might not fool Bulkhead."

"I doubt it would." Breakdown leaned his forearms on the table. "Bulkhead isn't an idiot. But from the sound of it, these kids are." He got up from the table before Jack could be offended. "This is pointless. If you need me, I'll be on patrol."

Jack expected Megatronus, or even Knockout, to say something. But no one did. They all sat there as Breakdown transformed into an armored truck, and drove away. The sound of his engine faded down the hall.

Jack looked around at all of them. For the first time, he noticed the sagging shoulders, drooping glances. None of the Decepticons held themselves with any kind of dignity, or energy. He had seen that kind of look only one other time, on a classmate, right before she slit her wrists. Depression. No hope. The Decepticons were on the verge of giving up. And right then, Jack couldn't think of a reason why they shouldn't.  
-

_Bugbite slowly opened his optics. He felt no pain, only a dull ache, though he wasn't sure if that was because it had stopped or because he was still numbed. Taking care to only move his head, he looked around. The med bay was empty._

_Bugbite slowly sat up, trying not to jostle the leads carrying vital fluids. The hole in his chest was gone. Cracks in his armor had been welded shut. A brace was fixed over his right knee servo. The Doctor had done a marvelous job._

_A mirror-screen had been erected overhead. Bugbite supposed it was for torture victims to be able to see exactly what was being done to them. He leaned back, watching his image. The paint, a drab desert camo, was peeling. He'd have to get detailing done. One optic flickered, and for a moment, Bugbite felt dizzy. He'd tell the Doc later. Maybe. If it happened again. He examined himself, every micron. He regretted having polluted his wonderful body with Dark Energon. It was so near perfect. So sleek, streamlined._

_His admiration came to a close as the port spun open. Ratchet strode to his side, a view screen in hand. "Oh, good," he said. "You're awake."_

_"Did you search the logs?" Bugbite was startled at how raspy his voice sounded. How long had he been out?_

_"I did, and I see no reason why I had to. Those humans never moved outside their designated zones."_

_"Never?" Bugbite let that sink in. He replayed the memory. His processors compared images. They came back as a match. Those humans had been there. And yet they couldn't have._

_"Never. Why did you want me to check in the first place?"_

_"None of your business!" Bugbite snapped. He calmed himself. "When I figure it out, I'll let you know."_

_The Doc eyed him suspiciously, then nodded._

_While Ratchet went about his tasks, Bugbite lay on the berth and fretted. Fragments of memory swirled around._

Rafael running forward. Jackson holding him back. "Bumblebee, are you okay?"

Three human faces, filled with fear.

_Three human faces, emotionless, blank._

Miko, cowering behind a rock. Short black hair, splashed with red.

_Miko, marching in formation. Long black hair , hanging in greasy strands._

Exposed necks.

_Metal collars._

Soundwave as a car, knocking him over. Soundwave, resuing humans.

Soundwave on a battlefield, blasting human soldiers into oblivion.

Megatronus Prime.

Rafael, running forward.

Rafael, cowering.

"You're not Bumblebee."

_There it was. Bumblebee. The name the High Counsel had given him. The name he had rejected when he'd joined the Autobots. No, he wasn't Bumblebee. Bumblebee was good, innocent. Bumblebee had died on Cybertron. So how did a human know that name?_

_Unless he came from somewhere else, somewhere that Bumblebee still lived._

_Was it possible? He almost laughed. Of course not. The child's mind was addled, having slipped his bonds._

_All three of them? How? And why only those three? If you could free three slaves, why not free them all? No, the humans in the canyon were not the ones he knew._

_Clones? Made by the Decepticons to distract him? Unlikely. They wouldn't have the tech, or the moral objectivity._

_Bugbite wracked his processor for other ideas. Came up empty._

_Somewhere else._

_Where?_

You know where_, a voice whispered in his mind. _You've always known.

_And he had. "Shattered," he whispered, too quiet for Ratchet to hear. "A barrier between worlds." Wheeljack. Experiments within experiments. A space-bridge. His mind played with thoughts dormant for megacycles. This could be the greatest thing to ever happen. Or the worst. A rock had been thrown through a mirror. The pieces had taken form. "Shattered glass," he whispered._

**A/N: I know that mentioning things in that way is taboo, but I wanted to find a way to put the phrase shattered glass in the story, as like a metaphor, and have it make sense. And although this chapter has been kind of odd, I like it. Next chapter, I promise, will be less creepy hopelessness and more punching and blasting and awesomeness.**


	6. Damn Kids

Transformers Prime Shattered Glass

Chapter 6: Damn Kids

**A/N: well, no new relics yet. Same list:**

**1) polarity gauntlet  
2) red energon  
3) prototype from nemesis prime renamed Galvatron  
4) forge of Solus prime  
5) requiem blaster not star saber**

**Y'all have only got a few more chapters to come up with something.**

**For now I'd just like to say how awesome it was to get **_**ten **_**reviews. That's a personal best!**

**Several people have asked if the kids will meet their SG versions. The answer is duh, of course! But since they're enslaved by the autobots, they won't actually be themselves. The fun part will be SG June.**

**Yay, new chapter!**

_Damn kids_.

The thought ran through Breakdown's processor over and over again. It was like a mantra. He had to say it to keep going. The Decepticons had had a good thing going. A few missions, a bunch of fighting, a trusted ally in Silas. Then Megatronus goes and adds those three sniveling brats. Only a couple hours and their crap is already strewn through the base, and the whole team's at each other's throats.

Damn kids.

The desert was cool, not that it mattered. The wind was low, the stars bright. A perfect night for a drive. Ten minutes later, Breakdown could feel his mind clearing. His tires hummed over the packed sand road.

Some time later, he realized the surface was pavement, not sand. He'd been driving a while. It usually took an hour to reach the main road. Breakdown pulled over and allowed his engine to idle. After a moment, he opened his comm. An old message from Megatronus asked him to avoid trouble and stay away from humans. He snorted. On the secure frequency, he pinged the operator.

"Nice of you to check in," Airachnid purred. "Your axles burning? Need me to carry you?"

"Always." Inside, he grinned. "But I ain't ready to come back yet. Got anything for me?"

He imagined her lithe frame as she searched the database. Wished she wasn't such a tease.

"An unconfirmed energon spike in sector 38-Q. You're close."

"Good enough for me. Er, anyone asks-"

"I'll cover. You could make New York. Probably."

"I hear that."

Breakdown revved his engine, felt the cylinders pumping. "Let's ride." Smoke spewed from his tires as he sped away.  
-

It snuck up on him. He could see the town from miles away, make out every detail. But all of a sudden, he was there, among the empty and silent buildings. Breakdown regretted shutting off his comm.

_Where the hell would there be energon around here?_ Of course, it could be anywhere. The energon would've been there thousands of years. _Okay then. _He activated his T-cog.

Breakdown pulled out his handheld. "Come out, come out where ever you are." The device showed no spikes. Slowly, he made his way into the center of town.

Tall buildings, maybe apartments, ringed a trash-strewn square. Grass and shrubs grew from cracks in the pavement. The glass of every window had been shattered. One facade had fallen off completely. It was, without a doubt, the biggest shithole he'd seen on Earth.

He made a circuit, pausing to look at a metal bed frame half buried in the rubble. A pile of pale ivory sticks lay under it. As he passed, a large yellowed egg shape dropped out. An electronic shiver traveled Breakdown's spinal strut as he noticed the eye sockets.

At the end of the round, not one signal had appeared on the handheld. That, he figured, was good enough. Let Soundwave come back if he wanted. The little guy seemed to like this crap. "Breakdown to base, I need a bridge."

After a moment, with no vortex, he tried again. "Airachnid, I could use a ground-bridge."

A beat.

"Are you playing Galaga again?" There was static. "Hello?

_Scrap._

He could think of only one reason that they wouldn't answer that didn't involve them being dead, which they couldn't be because they would've radioed him for help. Someone was jamming his signal.

_Trap._

The word began to echo. Breakdown backed across the square, sensors screaming. He was suddenly aware of how exposed he was, of how many vantage points there were. Some party had left energon, just enough to trigger an unconfirmed. They would be waiting. For anyone stupid enough to investigate.

"I'm gettin outta here." He backed up two steps, then swiveled on his heel. He made it exactly three steps. That's when it hit him.

An electric shock tore open Breakdown's circuits. Pain jerked his peds out from under him, sent him sprawling. Buildings crumbled as his body quaked the ground.

"I'm afraid I can't allow that." The voice was a soft baritone, with a slight southern accent. Breakdown could barely hear it through the pain. He forced his optics to focus. A man was striding towards him, flanked by a pair of thugs in combat gear. He was tall, African-American, a bit portly. He wore a grey suit over a white shirt. His black tie was hilariously short.

"Who are you supposed to be?" Breakdown ground out from clenched denta.

The man knelt by his head. "Special Agent William Fowler, of course. Unit E of MASK? Maybe you know us better as Cemetary Wind. Of course, that isn't important. What is, is that you're Breakdown. A Decepticon."

"What's it to you?"

"Oh, not much. But your friends have something of mine. I'd like it back."

Fowler snapped his fingers, and the thug on the left stepped foreward. He raised a weapon of some kind. There was a bright blue flash.

And Breakdown was out.  
-

Bored. Jack was bored. It was incredible that he could be bored when he was stuck in an alien space craft in an alternate dimension. Of course, it didn't help that MECH hadn't included a gaming system in the ammenities.

So he took a walk through the base, listless. He thought about the Autobot base, and how different but similar it was. The Hub, with the ground-bridge and sick bay. The hallway full of storage spaces. The sparring room. The energon pipes along the halls.

Jack eventually wandered into the Hub, hoping to find Megatronus or even Soundwave there. But no, only Airachnid, manning the ground-bridge terminal. Although, from his position, it looked like she was playing a video game. He could see a little space ship blowing up aliens. He considered backing out, but she noticed him first. She quickly exited the game.

"Yes?" She sounded amused, like _he_ was the one caught slacking. Her optics burned into him.

Jack allowed himself a moment to look at her. Even rounded out, she was very different from Arcee. It was just in the way she carried herself. Arcee, at least as he knew her, was soft and kind. She would- and had in the past- dodge blaster fire to save him. Something told him Airachnid would too. But that thought didn't make him less uneasy. Because he didn't know why.

"Where are the others?" He glanced around the area, like they might be hiding, and walked over.

"Well, Breakdown is still out. Knockout's in the lab. Megatronus is in his room. Soundwave..." She waved a hand dismissively. "Well, he's not here, is he? It's just you and me." As she talked, Airachnid dropped lower, sitting cross legged. She leaned her chin on one hand.

"Right." Jack didn't know what else to say.

"You should sleep," she suggested, a twinkle in her optic.

"You should talk," he shot back.

"We don't sleep."

"You don't... power down, or something?"

"No."

"Huh." Jack blinked, suppressing a yawn. He didn't actually want to go to sleep. He wanted something to happen. Anything.

The communicator crackled suddenly. "Down... Ase. Nee... Ridge."

Airachnid glanced at Jack, then got to her feet. He walked away as she spoke to the machine. "Breakdown? You need something?" There was only static. As Jack watched, she shrugged, then reopened the video game.  
-

He wasn't sure how long it had been. Maybe only a half hour. Maybe longer. But Jack found himself standing in the sparring room. Soundwave was there. The silent robot was exchanging blows with some kind of training droid. The thing had about seven different arms, a different weapon in each hand. Two blades swung towards Soundwave, and he deflected them of his forearms, amazingly without noise. A blaster fired. With only a tiny twist of his body, the plasma soared past. Another gun flipped out, and a stream of fire scorched the room. Jack could feel the heat from the doorway. Soundwave rolled to the side, then flipped into the air. He landed beyond the flames with only the slightest thunk of metal on metal.

The scout was a badass.

Airachnid's voice came over a speaker attached to the wall. "Decepticons, you might want to see this."

Soundwave turned his faceplate towards the speaker. After a moment, he walked out of the room, every step silent. Jack watched him go. He wondered what was happening. He remembered his earlier wish for excitement. Regretted it. Then he ran towards the Hub.

He made it, only two steps behind Soundwave. The Decepticons gathered in front of the largest monitor. Jack crouched next to the door. Listened.

"Airachnid," Megatronus sounded impatient. "What is it? A new high score?"

"No." Her voice was serious. "There's a call for you. On Breakdown's secure channel."

"So?"

"It's not Breakdown."

Megatronus narrowed his optics, then walked over to the monitor. He punched in a code like it had done something to him personally. "Who is this?" he hissed.

The screen flickered, before dissolving into the image of a large African-American man. One who was very familiar looking to Jack. The Cons backed away, seemingly startled. "Megatronus Prime," the man drawled. "We finally get to talk face to face. Its an honor."

"Agent Fowler. What have you done with Breakdown?" He appeared somewhere between rage and despair.

"Your lackey is quite all right. We've merely hacked his comm channels. How else was I supposed to deliver my ultimatum?"

The man's calm was chilling. Megatronus hesitated a moment. "We are listening."

Fowler clasped his hands over his stomach. "I have Breakdown. You have something of mine. The Dingus." A pause. "I want it."

"No."

"Then I kill your friend. And we turn his body into fresh ammo."

Jack could see the ripples of concern run through the Decepticons. "We can't turn it over to him," Airachnid whisper-hissed to Megatronus. The Prime nodded imperceptibly.

"We cannot allow Breakdown to die, either." He looked at Fowler. "If we were to agree to your terms, what would they be?"

The man grinned smugly. "Two of you will bring me the device. I will be at these coordinates-" A map appeared onscreen, a small triangle blinking. "Once I have the Dingus, I'll release your friend."

Megatronus nodded. He spoke slowly. "We must consider this carefully. I presume-"

Fowler held up a hand. "You've got one hour. Or Breakdown will meet his maker."

The screen cut to static.  
-

Breakdown strained against the metal bands holding him down. They were several inches thick, bolted to the floor with nuts the size of his optic. All his strength gained him nothing.

He watched as the lone door to the room opened. Agent Fowler walked in. "Have a nice nap?"

"You're gonna pay for that."

"I'll take my chances."

Breakdown watched the MASK agents carefully. "Did you call Megatronus?"

"I did."

"And?"

"Oh, they're coming." Fowler grinned. "They'll bring me my device, no trouble. Their compassion is their weakness."

"And yours isn't? You're only human."

Fowler's grin faded. He pulled a gun from his hip, cocked it. He fired a round into the stone floor. Chips of rock flew. Almost too fast for Breakdown to see, Fowler swept the gun up to the side, and shot one of his soldiers in the head. The man slumped to the ground. Blood dripped down the wall. "I am human. But I don't have weaknesses. That man was with me for almost twenty years. I knew his father.

"You're friends will bring me a new toy. But when I take it, and kill you, it will break them. I won't need it, anymore." Fowler motioned to his men. They filed out of the room, two dragging the dead soldier. Breakdown shuddered as the door closed. The lights flickered out.

He thought back to the earlier conversation with the kids. How at ease they'd been. He could tell that they'd been in hard situations before. He wondered what they'd make of this one. Couldn't think of anything.

_Where are those damn kids when you need them?_

**A/N: Okay, took a little more to write this stuff than I thought. I have to re-think the number of chapters. But hopefully, this chapter was more exciting for everbody.**


	7. Schemes

Transformers Prime Shattered Glass

Chapter 7: Schemes

**A/N: I didn't mean to take this long. Geez. I really need to get more serious about this. Oh well. Once my 'puter gets fixed, I'll be posting some videos on Youtube that I hope some of you will check out. Mean time:  
1) polarity gauntlet  
2) red energon  
3) prototype from nemesis prime renamed Galvatron  
4) forge of Solus prime  
5) requiem blaster not star saber  
6) phase shifter  
7) cyber caliper (possible)  
****8) spark extractor  
9) tox-en  
10) Kremzeek (not to be named)**

**Keep 'em coming, I figure I could fit in at least 20, since season 2 had 20 episodes with artifacts, and some episodes had multiple artifacts.**

**I also wanted to talk about alt modes. Specifically, Soundwave's. Soundwave turns into a made up car (**_**I**_** made it up) called a Dartmouth 3XZ. My description of it as a Ferrari was wrong. It actually looks like someone crossed AOE Lockdown's Lamborghini with a TFP Vehicon sports car and elongated the hood. The car is wedge shaped all around, the front narrower than the back. The car sits low to the ground, and it's front end is only about 2 feet tall. Its very angular but sleek, dangerous looking. It has a muscle-car-crossed-with-a-dragster thing going on. I can't draw cars very good, but I might try for a picture.**

**Other news, oh, look, another chapter!**

When Miko collapsed on the space-foam bed, she didn't even have time to enjoy the cool sheets before she passed out. Instantly, she found herself in another place, another time. One that had never existed, but was nonetheless familiar. The dream was her favorite. The first night she'd had it was after Jack and Arcee won the race with Vince.

This time, it was Miko and Jack who were racing.

Middle of the Jasper desert, SUV against motorcycle. Not their guardians, just vehicles. No parents. No Autobots. Just them, and the road. Mile marker 107.0 passed, and they sped up. They had just ten markers. One mile.

Jack weaved around the corner, leaning into the turn. Miko downshifted, yanking the parking brake back for only seconds, and the SUV skidded sideways. The front end lined up with the road again, and she floored it.

Through the curves, Miko caught up with Jack. 107.9 passed. Just one tenth of a mile. A final curve of pavement. She stomped the accelerator, yanked the lever, held the wheel...

Jack's eyes widened behind his helmet as she shot by him, the marker still a little ways off. She watched him track her, and gave a little wave before shooting forward. This was her win.

That's when the tires slipped in a patch of windblown sand, thudding offroad. Skidding out of control, Miko made the rookie mistake of hitting the brakes. They locked, sending her into a tailspin. Desperately, she fumbled with her seatbelt. Outside the windshield, the desert spun crazily. A low ridge of stone swept around, and the SUV slammed into it. She went airborne.

Miko pounded the release button. Her belt slipped aside. She fell backwards out of the open sunroof. Below, the ridge threatened to crack her spine.

This was the part of the dream that most got to her. It fed her thoughts every day, twisted her mind.

As she fell, a blue blur sped onto the desert. Miko felt wiry arms wrap around her, even as something slammed her bodily sideways. The impact forced her onto the soft sand. The SUV kept rolling, tearing itself apart. When it finally halted, the twisted metal was barely recognizable as a vehicle. A moment later, it exploded. Miko squeezed her eyes shut from the glare.

When she opened them, Jack was holding her, propped against his knee. She felt weak, uncertain- two things she never was while awake. The harsh desert sun glinting off his features made him look like some mythic hero. Gently, he reached down and stroked her face, brushing a strand of hair away. She figured she must look awful.

Then, like always, Jack bent his neck down, and kissed her. Not on the forehead, or cheek. And not for just a second either. Their lips were together, and it was going on, and on, and on...

"Miko, wake up!"

The dream shattered, Jack's voice completely real. His hand flew off her shoulder as she flailed her limbs. One foot connected with something soft, and she heard Raf grunt. Slowly, she opened her eyes. Sand crust peeled away from the lids.

Jack squatted beside Raf, who was holding his gut. The room was dark. She could barely make out the metal scales of the walls. She was glad for the blackness, suddenly aware that she was in her bed clothes.

"Sorry Raf," she murmured. "You okay?"

"Fine," he wheezed.

"Wha's hapnin'?" Miko struggled to sit up.

Jack looked up at her. "Breakdown's been kidnapped. By Agent Fowler."

She almost laughed. The big lug had gotten himself taken by a human? Not only a human, but possibly the most inept one to ever be called 'agent'. It was funny.

And honestly, a little scary.

"What's Megatronus gonna do?"

Jack looked away. "I'm not sure. But unless you want to miss it, get up."

She nodded, and ran a hand through her hair. When she slept, she removed the ties. Otherwise, they tended to dig into her scalp, and she never got to sleep.

Jack paused in her doorway. "You should leave it down."

"What?"

He looked embarrassed. "It- it looks good down. Your hair."

Miko considered. Maybe it was just something residual from the dream, but she felt more receptive than normal. "I'll think about it."

Jack smiled nervously before walking out.

She shook her head. The dream didn't matter. Jack had no interest in her. Besides, this was the worst possible time to start a relationship. They could both die tomorrow.

So why couldn't she get the image out of her head- the one of Jack, holding her like she was the most precious thing in the world.  
-

Ten minutes later Miko was back to herself. She'd put on fresh clothes and a triple layer of deodorant. Her hair ties were back in, just to get under Jack's skin. Although, when she walked into the Hub, he looked more disappointed than annoyed. Whatever.

Airachnid leaned on the ground-bridge controls, looking disdainfully at the verbal pissing match in front her. Noticing Miko, the femme discretely raised her middle digit, a playful grin on her faceplate. She didn't get it, but Miko returned the gesture, wondering if it meant something different here. Soundwave glanced at them before returning his attention to the argument.

"We cannot abandon Breakdown!" Megatronus struck the table, shaking the whole room. Knockout didn't appear impressed.

"You think I don't know that?" The physician waved a hand at their surroundings. "You're the one who is always going on about 'protecting humanity'. I would think that millions of homo sapiens would more important to you than one soldier!"

"Breakdown is not just a soldier," Megatronus countered. "He is family."

"'Sometimes, the things we love must be sacrificed on the altar of a higher purpose.' Who said that? Oh, right, _you_ did."

"I meant physical things, relationships! Not lives!"

Miko'd had enough. Fowler and Bulkhead had gotten along better than this. "HEY!" When everyone looked at her, she gave them an innocent smile and a shrug. "You mind telling the rest of us what the deal is? Otherwise we can't do scrap."

Knockout looked a bit embarassed. Megatronus anxiously rubbed the back of his helm. "My apologies," he said. "That was a lapse that shall not happen again. Breakdown has been-"

"Kidnapped by Agent Fowler," Raf finished. "You can skip that part." Miko glanced at the tween, noting a much tougher expression on his face than usual.

Megatronus took the interruption in stride. "Agent Fowler has demanded the return of the DINGUS in exchange for Breakdown's life. The DINGUS is a fusion device, capable of being used as a power source... or a weapon of mass destruction."

"Two guesses at what Fowler wants with it," Miko muttered to Jack. He looked like he might chuckle, but instead turned to the Cons.

"You have it?"

Knockout nodded. "We... commandeered it. Its our backup generator for the ground-bridge."

Jack looked at her, and Miko saw the question in his eyes. A no-win Mexican Standoff? This was her kind of fight. And she knew exactly what she would do. But Jack wouldn't want to hear it. Besides, saying anything would ruin her reputation. They would expect her to be on top of everything. No, she let Jack's gaze slide past to Raf. Let them figure it out.

"Like you said, we can't just leave Breakdown." Jack spoke slowly.

"Maybe..." Raf began, "Maybe we should give them exactly what they want."

"That's not a good idea," Jack whispered back. "Giving up the DINGUS would endanger too many people."

"No, listen: we don't _actually_ give them the DINGUS. We do like we did with the Energon Harvester! We make a -"

"Did you say... Energon Harvester?" Airachnid spoke up for the first time. "Where did you find one of those?"

"In the Chicago Museum of History, hidden in an Ancient Greek statue. But that's not important!" Raf's voice grew more intense. "We might be able to get them to release Breakdown. But you'll have to do _exactly _as I say."  
-

"_We must consider this carefully. I presume_-"

"_You've got one hour. Or Breakdown will meet his maker_."

Bugbite tapped his fingers thoughtfully. "Play it again."

Ultra Magnus glared at the younger Autobot, but dutifully began the recording again.

"_I have Breakdown. You have something of mine. The Dingus. I want it_."

"_No_."

"_Then I kill your friend. And we turn his body into fresh ammo_."

He listened with one audio receptor, allowing his processor to go over what he knew. This human, Agent Fowler, was a thorn in both factions' sides. The DINGUS was a powerful weapon, one that the Decepticons would never allow in the hands of humans or Autobots.

He had to have it.

The recording ended rather abruptly. Magnus once again looked at Bugbite, daring him to say anything. The comm chief's own silence was unnerving. Bugbite couldn't even remember the last time Magnus had spoken.

"Erase the tape," he said finally. "This doesn't concern us. Not yet. There is no need to bother Optimus with it."

Magnus' optics narrowed. It was a moment before he turned to the monitor and deleted the recording. Bugbite stayed to make sure it was gone, then stalked from the room. He had plans to make, and not much time to make them.  
-

Miko found herself leaning against the catwalk railing, Jack at her side. Below, Raf stood on the table, ordering the Decepticons around. It was a funny scene, though no one was laughing.

"So," Jack started. Miko stayed silent. "How are your hands feeling?"

She looked at the rags tied around her palms. They were stained black with dried blood, and every movement stung. "Much better," she lied. Jack eyed her like he knew she was lying, but didn't call her on it. "You really think this is going to work?"

"Raf seems pretty confident."

"He's been hanging around Ratchet too much." Now they laughed, imagining the cranky old medic, hunched over some device that needed fixing. "Remember when he took over our science projects?"

"Yeah. And Raf's blew the roof off the school!" They both chuckled.

Miko looked up, locking stares with Jack. She brushed a hair away from her eye. "Do... Do you think we'll actually get home?" Earlier she'd insinuated that she wanted to stay. But that was just bluster, arguing with Jack for the sake of arguing. She didn't want to stay here forever.

For his part, Jack seemed to get that. He looked away for a moment, taking in the base from this angle. Then he met her eyes again. "I don't know. But I hope so, Miko. I really do."  
-

Bugbite activated his T-cog in mid air, flipping onto the ground with an earth-shaking _thud_. Several building facades slew off in the quake. He barely glanced at them. His optics were focused on drag marks leading to a path through the rubble.

Only hours before, the Decepticon Breakdown had been here. This was the spot he was taken from. This was the spot from which Agent Fowler had contacted Megatronus. Bugbite's optics followed the path to a set of tire imprints. A large truck had been here. When it left, it had carried something extremely heavy. Bugbite grinned.

With a throaty laugh, he launched himself into the air again, shifting into the form of a fighter jet. Fuel blasted into his engines, and white hot plasma hurled him forward, following the tracks.  
-

Megatronus and Soundwave stood by the ground-bridge, the DINGUS strapped to a flatbed trailer. The two Decepticons would bridge to a location near the coordinates Agent Fowler provided, and drive the rest of the way. Miko was extremely jealous. "Why can't I come with?" she asked them again.

Megatronus gave her a small grin. "Because Agent Fowler stated that only two Decepticons would be allowed."

"Well, _I'm_ not a Decepticon."

"I doubt he would see it that way. In any case, as a human who sided with us, you would be killed on sight."

Having thoroughly dismissed her, Megatronus nodded at Soundwave, and the two of them shifted into their vehicle modes. Soundwave turned into a beautiful angular sports car, with a long, wedge shaped hood. It was a pretty radical car.

Megatronus' transformation was a touch more dramatic.

Panels clanked and groaned, gears whirred, pistons hissed. Megatronus' chest and legs flowed forward into a snub nose, his shoulders became a large cab, and his arms were shoved backwards to form a hitch. Seconds after the change began, a large silver semi truck stood in place of the Decepticon leader. In contrast to Soundwave's hard edges, the truck was all rounded, flowing. A subtle pattern of darker silver formed flames streaming from the front. Violet highlights gave it a fierce look.

The truck's engine grumbled to life, and it backed into the waiting trailer. Off to the side, Knockout yanked the lever, and the ground-bridge flared open. Soundwave roared through first. Megatronus followed. When they were gone, Knockout shut the bridge down, and settled in next to the comm unit.

Miko heaved a mighty sigh, and stomped back up to the catwalk, but inside she was glad for the way things had gone. She had her own plan. One that didn't involve the Cons. She needed Raf.

The boy sat on the stairs, busily reprogramming the laptop that MECH had procured for him. He'd already synced it with the Cons' systems. Now he was trying to make the interface more user friendly. Miko supposed that meant even she would be able to use it then. "Hey," she said, dropping down next to him.

"What, Miko?"

"Is Agent Fowler already at the meeting place?" She knew he could bring up the satellite images, and he did, with a small complaint.

"He's just pulling up now. Why?"

"Do those things record?"

"Twenty four hours only. Why?" he asked again.

"Can you figure out where Fowler came from?" Raf finally seemed to catch on a little bit. He gave her a small grin.

"Give me a minute."  
-

The base was small, even by human standards. This much Bugbite knew. He stayed low, circling the compound. Far to the east, the planetary system's star was beginning to rise. Dark shadows were gradually shortening. A morning mist clung to everything.

Bugbite surveyed the scene, noting that every hangar was occupied by several aircraft, and that none of the other buildings was large enough to hold Breakdown. But the tracks he had followed stopped here. So he waited.

A quarter hour later, a helicopter appeared in the northeast. Bugbite landed quickly, hiding himself under a ridge. As he watched, the insect-like aircraft deposited several humans. Among them, a portly African American in a suit. Fowler. The man walked over to an empty stretch of tarmac and simply stood there, waiting.

A minute later, that tarmac began to rise. Bugbite angled himself against the rocks for a better look. A tunnel led deep into the ground, lit by many small bulbs. He nodded to himself. Underground made sense.

A small flat-nosed truck drove up out of the tunnel, hauling a flatbed trailer. Bugbite guessed it would be used to transport the DINGUS back to this base. He saw no sign of Breakdown. Fowler heaved himself up into the truck's passenger seat, and a convoy of MASK vehicles roared into the desert. The helicopter, Bugbite noted, stayed put. He grinned.

Swiftly, he launched himself skyward, resuming his jet form. Bugbite hurtled low over the landscape in pursuit of the convoy.  
-

"Got it," Raf announced. Miko squatted next to him, while Jack watched from higher on the steps. "Agent Fowler came from a base only a few miles to the southeast. From this, most of it appears to be underground." He showed them a clip of a truck driving out of a hidden tunnel, zooming in on Fowler.

Jack watched, though he appeared disinterested. Miko was overjoyed. "Can you get exact coordinates for inside that tunnel?" she asked.

Raf answered by typing out the commands to do it. A string of numbers materialized onsceen. "Like that?" he said.

Jack finally managed to grasp what she was thinking. And he did not like it. "Miko, we are not going to rescue Breakdown. Right Raf?"

"Well..."

"Dude." Miko put her hands on her hips and gave her best 'try me' face. "Fowler isn't _that_ dumb. He's not going to just hand over Breakdown. We gotta do this ourselves."

Raf opened a new window on the computer. "I can open a ground-bridge inside the base. We sneak in, free Breakdown, and get out. Its actually a pretty solid idea."

Jack looked back and forth between the two of them, as if to decide who was more insane. Finally he sighed. "I suppose we have to try. We're the reason Breakdown left the ship anyway."

The three of them quietly made their way across the Hub. Raf looked at Miko, gave a little grin, then tapped the enter key. Immediately, a red vortex swirled into being. Knockout and Airachnid shot to their feet in surprise. "Hey!" the physician shouted. "What do you think you're doing!"

"Go!" Miko shouted, shoving the boys forward. The three of them ran into the whirl of light, leaving the Decepticons behind. A minute later, they emerged from the other side in a dark hall. The only light came from Raf's laptop, though it was enough that they could see the ground sloping up to meet the ceiling. They'd made it.  
-

Megatronus and Soundwave emerged from the ground-bridge just as the last bits of morning fog dissapated in the desert sun. Though the sight was stunningly beautiful, the darkness of their situation did not allow for them to enjoy it. Megatronus revved his engine, and together they set out for the meeting with Agent Fowler.

It took only minutes to reach the agreed coordinates. When they came around final curve of the road, Megatronus was not surprised to see Fowler already waiting. The man wore a smug expression on his scarred face.

"Hold where you are," Fowler called. "Lemme see your hands."

Megatronus sighed internally at the foolishness of it all. But he dutifully disconnected from the trailer and transformed. Soundwave did the same. They stepped aside, hands held high. Humans swarmed over the trailer, and the device.

"Bring me the DINGUS." The men hastened to obey their commander, a team of them removing the straps holding it to the trailer. A crane arm swung over from the MASK truck, and one soldier attached the magnetic hook to the device. The crane lifted, and slowly swung to the side. The cube-shaped machine landed with a soft clank, and more soldiers swarmed to strap it down. Megatronus watched them work, his faceplate expressionless.

Fowler turned his gaze on the two Decepticons. "Thank you," he told them with a smirk. "I'm sure that your cooperation will reflect well on future endeavors." The man started to walk back to the truck.

"Not so fast," Megatronus said. "Where is Breakdown." It wasn't a question, merely a statement to get the ball rolling, as it were.

"Breakdown, Breakdown..." Agent Fowler rubbed his chin. "Oh, do you mean the pathetic pile of scrap metal in our base? Oh, he's fine for now."

"Our agreement was that Breakdown would be returned once you had the DINGUS."

Fowler laughed. "Yeah, I've been thinking about that. You see, I have to be sure you Cons aren't pulling my leg. So here's the new deal: once I make sure the DINGUS is in full working order, then you can have the big lug back."

Megatronus narrowed his optic. This was not good, but it was not unexpected either. "And how do you plan to confirm the device is operational?"

The man raised an eyebrow. "How do you think? I'm going to detonate it."

Megatronus regarded the human. Then he began to laugh. The laugh sounded somewhat forced, but it caught Fowler off guard. The man backed up a slight bit. "Something funny?"

"Not at all!" the Prime told him. Megatronus reached onto his back and pulled out a small cylinder, barely large enough to fit in his palm, with a single button on the top. Fowler peered at it closely.

"What is that?"

"This? This is a trigger. You want to see a detonation? I will give you one." Megatronus' laugh morphed into a snarl. "Agent Fowler, unless you return Breakdown, I will press this trigger, detonating the device here, and now. And we will _all _die."

**A/N: wow, I just realized how long this one is. I hope you enjoyed it, and next chapter we get some boom time, as AOE Hound would say. Good? Good.**


	8. The History of Shattered Glass

Transformers Prime Shattered Glass

Chapter 7.5: The History of SG

**A/N: okay, so you guys are pressuring me to do stuff with the thirteen, and unicron, and all that stuff, and while i will do stuff with the 'unicron-in-the-center-of-the-earth' thing, i don't know when or even if i will put in stuff for the past. so what i've decided is to just do a quick write up of the past, get everybody off my back, cause i'm kind of getting sick of it. if a chance comes up, i will tell the story in the actual fic, but that is neither here nor there.**

**1) polarity gauntlet  
2) red energon  
3) prototype from nemesis prime renamed Galvatron  
4) forge of Solus prime  
5) requiem blaster not star saber  
6) phase shifter  
7) cyber caliper (possible)  
****8) spark extractor  
9) tox-en  
10) Kremzeek (not to be named)  
11) The Seed (a different way to launch cybermatter)**

**this chapter does not count towards the use of artifacts.**

so, millions upon millions of years ago, two beings made of energy- named primus and unicron- were fighting. this part we know. primus was light, unicron was darkness. then primus created the thirteen, and they defeated unicron, yada yada yada.

in my SG universe, the beginning is the same. what is different is that the thirteen primes did not defeat unicron for primus, but rather for themselves. unicron was an obstacle to their own conquest of the universe.

in the normal 'verse, the primes were mostly good. it went like this:  
-good: prima  
alpha trion  
alchemist prime  
onyx prime  
micronus prime  
solus prime  
optimus prime (he was later reincarnated as orion pax. sorry if i spoiled it for you)  
nexus prime  
vector prime  
amalgamous prime (did i spell that right? probably not)  
-bad: megatronus prime  
liege maximo  
quintus prime (only because he made the quintessons)

in SG, its _mostly_ reversed:  
-bad: prima, the tyrant  
alpha trion, the manipulator  
alchemist prime, the (mad) scientist  
onyx prime, the beast  
micronus prime, the copy-cat  
solus prime, the builder  
optimus prime, the fallen  
-good: megatronus prime, the hero  
liege maximo, the diplomat  
quintus prime, the creator  
nexus prime, the combiner  
vector prime, the guardian  
amalgamous prime, the shifter

so the way it works is this. prima has solus create a bunch of weapons for the others. the 'good' primes have weapons that, while still powerful, are not hugely destructive. the rest of them, well... prima himself comissioned a massive sword (the star saber) which required all of them to wield. Together, they stabbed unicron through the chest and hurled his body into deep space. the sword itself was left to drift. it was so massive that it generated its own gravitational field. eventually, an entire planet formed around it.

in the mean time, solus and optimus became entangled in a romance that was passionate but not very stable, as they were ill suited to one another. it would later end in tragedy.

alpha trion's weapon, the quill, allowed him to write anything and have it be believed. he used it to craft a path by which the other primes would destroy each other and allow him to sieze control. one of his lies would facilitate the conflict between solus and optimus.

vector prime, seeing how foolish the others were, chose to lock himself in a sub-dimension where he would watch over space-time.

amalgamous, nexus, and micronus all chose to leave cybertron and explore the universe, sometimes together, sometimes seperately.

quintus, alchemist, and onyx had their own plan to dominate. they began to build an army of beastial warriors, called predacons, to destroy the other primes, and eventually, primus himself.

now, with all this in mind, let me add that solus prime, even though she is pretty much the most evil and sadistic of all the primes, is loved by all of them. not the way optimus loves her, but platonically. so when, as a consequence of alpha trion's lies, solus and optimus get into an argument, and optimus kills her, the others become outraged. the primes converge on cybertron, intent on bringing optimus to justice. megatronus confronts him directly, and in the battle, optimus kills his old friend. the primes are now doubly angry.

then prima discovers the predacon plot. desperate, onyx unleashes them before they're ready, and the predacons turn on him. he is mortally wounded, but survives for quite a while. the other primes make short work of the beasts in an event later referred to as the great cataclysm. a large portion of cybertron is simply obliterated. that portion would later become the sea of rust.

the liege maximo begins to have an idea of what alpha trion has been up to, but when he tried to expose the archivist's treachery, no one believes him. they begin to argue, occasionally with their fists. maximo confronts alpha trion himself, and manages to shatter the quill, undoing all of the lies. the primes turn on alpha trion despite maximo's protests, and literally tear him apart. they then begin to dispense the other justice. quintus, for his role in the predacon debacle, is exiled from the planet. he goes on to create a benevolent race called the quintessons, who seed the universe with organic life.

optimus prime, fully realizing what he has done, is horrified that he killed his love and his best friend. he leaves cybertron and is never seen or heard from again. the others rebrand him the fallen,and remove all traces of nobility from his story.

vector prime retreats back into his pocket dimension because he has grown to loathe the other primes.

nexus prime split into five smaller beings during the predacon war, and it was then that his enigma of combination was shattered. he remained trapped in five seperate bodies, and eventually they all forgot who they once were. they, along with amalgamous prime, set out into the universe to explore. at some point, amalgamous lost his t-cog, and then he himself disappeared.

on cybertron, a truce was called. the five remaining primes gathered what they could of alpha trion's body and shoved it into a patched together tomb in the middle of nowhere. they went to retrieve solus' body, only to find that it had melted a hole all the way to the planet's center. they descended, and found themselves before the spark of primus. he purged prima, onyx, micronus, and alchemist of their darkness. from that darkness was born a large shard of dark energon, which was then jettisoned into the void. unfortunately, that shard hit unicron's body, and gave it just enough of a jump start to keep his spark from totally going out.

the dying onyx, joined by his friend micronus, merged their own sparks with primus', thus creating a doorway into the allspark. the well of all sparks was born. prima, alchemist, and liege maximo retrieved solus' body, and returned to the surface. they crafted her a beautiful tomb which was placed in deep space with a perfect view of the most wondrous nebulae.

finally, the three primes began crafting a new society for the emerging cybertronians. among the new race was a mining drone, in whom was the reincarnated spark of megatronus. the liege maximo became a teacher to honor what the thirteen originally were. he kept a careful record of history, and occasionally, he used onyx's triptych mask to view the future. he found the mining drone, who showed promise in mathamatics, and began to teach him.

the drone, d-16, became friends with a young historian named orion pax.

...

we all know the rest, more or less.

**A/N: there it is. i don't want any more reviews tell me things like, 'rename the fallen as the liberated', or 'call the thirteen primes the thirteen rexes'. no, i named him optimus rex because rex, in latin, means king. he took that name when he was rejected by the high counsel on cybertron. the thirteen were primes, they will always be primes.**

**er, any who. uh, yeah. that was 99% of the history of cybertron, without bothering with the more recent stuff every transformers fan should know or be able to figure out.**

**don't worry, i'll have the next actual chapter out soon enough. usually, i wait a couple days for the reviews, just in case anybody sends me a golden idea. so i'll probably start typing tomorrow, which means, oh, it'll be around wednesday or thursday that i finish. probably. tootles!**


	9. Infiltration

Transformers Prime Shattered Glass

Chapter 8: Infiltration

**A/N: Aw, hell yeah! Boom time!  
1) polarity gauntlet  
2) red energon  
3) prototype from nemesis prime renamed Galvatron  
4) forge of Solus prime  
5) requiem blaster not star saber  
6) phase shifter  
7) cyber caliper (possible)  
****8) spark extractor  
9) tox-en  
10) Kremzeek (not to be named)  
11) The Seed (a different way to launch cybermatter)  
12) Transmetal (II) Driver**

Special Agent William Fowler had seen a lot of things since joining MASK in his youth. The downfall of the United States, for one. Now it was simply called the Defederacy. He vividly remembed the look on President Clinton's face, right before he and about twelve other soldiers shot him into hamburger meat. There wasn't enough of the man left to bury. Fowler wished he could've been at all the executions, but if he had to only be there for one, he was glad it had been the President.

Then of course, General Bryce had promoted himself from Secretary of Defense to Brigadier General President Elect Bryce, and the whole country had fallen into order. Excepting those radicals in MECH, but every society had its fringe. Like that group in Israel, or what had been Israel, that had slaughtered its own sensible government to keep them from surrendering to Bryce. Fowler had been the one to press the button condemning them to a nuclear hell. It had been one of the happiest days of his life.

They'd enjoyed a few peaceful years before the aliens showed up. Years without war, famine, or even suffering. Never mind that the main reason for that was that Africa and the Middle East were radioactive wastelands. No one in the Defederacy went to bed hungery, or cold. The social programs paid for by African Blood Diamonds (the population didn't need to know that) were exceptional. Course, that all went out the window once the Autobots arrived. And then the Decepticons! The populace was unstable. MECH's ranks were swelling. There was talk about a revolution. Not on his watch.

Bryce had once told Fowler that _he_ was the next in line for the Presidency. Fowler was Bryce's heir. So if this crap with the aliens didn't end soon, Fowler's future was over.

Now, as he stood beside the most potent nuclear weapon ever created, facing a homocidal alien robot, he felt calm. Fowler was the best, and the best did not fail. "You wouldn't," he told Megatronus.

The Decepticon leader appeared relaxed. He held the trigger-device in his hand naturally. His mouth- if you could call a gash in a fluid-metal plate a mouth- was turned up in a smile. Fowler could see every tick of his face, every movement of his servos. It helped that he was over thirty feet tall. But Megatronus was on a hair trigger.

"Wouldn't I? Would it not be worth my death to keep this device from the likes of you?"

"It wasn't worth Breakdown's." Fowler could see he'd hit a nerve. Or a wire, whatever. Megatronus' smile became a scowl.

"I cannot allow a commrade to perish, if there is something I can do to stop it." The single blue optic gleamed. "That is something you would not understand."

"You're right. I don't." Fowler stood there, feeling the tension in the air, and it was all he could do to keep a straight face. In a situation like this, all he had to do was wait. Sooner or later, the pressure would be too much for his enemy. Sooner, or later.  
-

"Hurry up, before someone sees us!" Jack hissed. Miko crouched by the door handle, expertly shifting a pair of metal rods in the lock. Of course the inner door to the base was locked. The could have gone farther down the tunnel, to where a garage of some sort no doubt waited, but they couldn't take the chance that it might have guards. As it was, they were hoping there were no hidden cameras within the walls.

"It goes faster if you shut up," she replied, and he resisted the urge to strangle her. Raf wasn't helping. He was busy on his laptop, doing frag-all. Jack had not wanted to do this. He was all for waiting back at the base. But no, of course not. And now, this. Three teenagers in a place they had no reason to be. It really was the Harvester all over again.

"Got it!" Miko grabbed the handle and threw the door open before either he or Raf was ready. It was getting harder for Jack to resist choking the life out of her. She could be so impulsive, and it only ever got them in trouble.

"Scrap!" She cursed and shut the door.

"What is it? Guards?"

Miko shook her head. "Nope. Just a stupid computer room."

Jack mentally kicked himself. He should have expected that the dungeon or wherever Breakdown was wouldn't be that easy to get to. "Okay, let's try-"

"Wait!" Raf shoved between them and opened the door. He peered into the room, his face growing more excited. "Yes! This is even better. C'mon, you guys."

Jack gave Miko a confused look, which she returned, and followed the genius in. He was really starting to regret ever meeting these two.  
-

Megatronus stood opposite Agent Fowler. It took every fiber-optic of his being not to simply reach out and crush the man. Likely, the other soldiers would kill him before he could kill Fowler. He had to stick to Rafael's plan. He had to wait.

The soldiers hadn't detected their deception. The lie burned him, but Megatronus accepted it. And that lie gave him strength. Fowler was going to try to wear him down. That wasn't going to happen.  
-

Bugbite crouched above the desert, watching the Decepticons and humans. Each of them was tightly wound, and a single wrong move would result in a bloodbath. If Bugbite were lucky, he would escape with the DINGUS, while one or both sides perished. His luck hadn't been all that great lately.

More likely, he would die along with the others. No, the time was not yet ripe for him to interfere. Bugbite settled into the rock. He might be here a while.  
-

Jack watched as Raf hooked his laptop up to a massive box that he assumed allowed access to the server. Or maybe it was the server. He had never been great with computers. Miko took the only other chair in the room and wedged it under the door handle. Jack was careful to be sure there were no cameras. They'd been caught in a room like this once before, and he had no desire to repeat the experience.

"Why are we in here, anyways?" The question wasn't directed at anyone in particular, but Jack really hoped Raf had an answer.

He did. "I'm looking for where they're keeping Breakdown. If we're lucky, I can let him out electonically."

"And if we're not?"

Raf paused a moment. "Then we're probably already dead."

Jack nodded. That wasn't unusual for them at all. "Just checking."  
-

"So tell me Megatronus." Fowler leaned back against the side of the truck, crossing his arms. "I release, Breakdown, take the DINGUS, what stops you from pressing that trigger?"

Megatronus mirrored the human's posture, angling himself off of a rock cliff. He wondered if Knockout and Airachnid had had any luck with their end of the plan. He couldn't be sure, not when MASK was jamming their comms. "Nothing, I suppose. You would have to take my word for it. Of course, we know how much you value a person's word."

He could see Fowler's muscles tense. He had touched something within the man. "Ah, Agent Fowler." Megatronus leaned in. "You do like to be a man of your word, don't you. And since you've already broken it once, that will... how did you put it? Reflect _badly _on future endeavors."

Fowler seemed about to reply when the radio on his hip crackled to life. It figured that MASK's own transmissions were capable of getting through the jamming. "_Sir, we have a situation. Security has been breached. I repeat, security has been breached._"

Fowler yanked the thing up to his mouth. "Talk to me. What's happening?"

"_Someone's infiltrated our server room. They're hacking in as we speak._"

Fowler glanced at Megatronus out of the corner of his eye. But the Decepticon leader was just as confused. Knockout and Airachnid wouldn't have gone on-site. The risk was too great. "Alien?" Fowler asked.

"_Human._" Megatronus felt his optics widen, but he couldn't help it. Surely the children wouldn't have- yes. Yes, they would have. In fact, it was probably a part of their plan all along. He silently cursed.

"Well, get in there and put a stop to it!" Fowler turned off the device. He turned slowly, taking out a strange gun while glaring at Megatronus. He raised the weapon. "I've got a new idea. Let's see which is faster. Your finger or mine."  
-

Jack almost couldn't believe the scene he saw on the laptop screen. Fowler, holding a gun on Megatronus. "Is he serious?"

"He must be," Raf pointed out, "Or else he wouldn't be doing it."

To Jack, the gun Fowler held was too small to present a threat to the Decepticons, but then again, what did he know. Megatronus looked slightly uneasy, staring down its barrel. It was a little harder to tell with Soundwave. "Can we help them?"

Raf hesitated. Clearly, he was torn between helping Megatronus and freeing Breakdown. If they freed Breakdown, the situation would probably dissolve into violence quickly. If they helped Megatronus, they might not get a chance to do what they came for. After a quick moment, Raf's face hardened. "I'll try."

The doornob suddenly rattled, and there was a loud thud as someone tried to force open the door. With a second thud, the back of the chair shattered. Miko leapt forward, pressing her whole weight against it. Jack quickly joined her, firmly pushing back. "You better hurry," she called to Raf, "Because I'm not sure how long we can keep this up!"

The boy didn't bother to respond, but his fingers blurred across the keyboard. From the other side of the door came a loud shout, and holes suddenly began to appear in the wood. It took several seconds for Jack's ears to fully register the sound of a gun being fired. Bullets sprayed everywhere, riccocheting off the far wall. Thankfully, he and Miko were hunched over, and the soldier was aiming for the height of a grown man. The bullets sailed over their heads.

When the barrage finally stopped, Jack let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. There was more shouting, this time from at least three different voices. The pounding on the door resumed, and Jack dug in. His shoulder felt like one massive bruise, but he held his own. But for how much longer, he didn't know.  
-

The gun was a Hesperide XLT. It used magnetic propulsion to throw a round of depleted uranium towards a target at speeds in excess of 500 miles per hour, with pinpoint accuracy. The thing had been made to stop tanks, but had been adapted for used by Cemetary Wind. Among Autobots and Decepticons alike, the Hesperide was feared. It had come to be known by a much simpler name: the Bot Buster. Megatronus had witnessed a shell tear through an omnibot's chest, forcing its spark out the back. So, seeing one pointed at his own spark, he felt a thrill of fear down his spinal strut.

In truth, he wasn't sure if he could pull the trigger before the Hesperide killed him. But Megatronus knew better than to try. Especially since, even if he could pull the trigger, it wouldn't do any good. So he waited, and prayed.

Whether or not his prayers were answered by some metaphysical being, he never figured out. It may have been simple coincedence that at the exact moment his prayer was completed, Raf managed to break the MASK firewall. In either case, all hell broke loose.

There was a loud thrumming sound as the electro-magnetic hook of the truck's crane activated. It generated its most powerful field, and the gun in Fowler's hand was instantly yanked upward. Because the man's grip was so tight, his hand went along with it. And his arm, and his whole body. Fowler slammed against the crane and then dropped to the ground. The other MASK soldiers also felt the effects, as every gun was suddenly yanked away from them. Chaos reigned as men fought to remove all metal from their bodies before they, too, were yanked away. Megatronus dug his claws into the rock face, feeling his peds beginning to slip. Soundwave was latched onto a large boulder.

One of the soldiers made the mistake of holding onto a grenade by its pin. The magnet pulled the explosive away, the pin slid out. Moments later, it exploded, destroying the magnet and everything attached to it. Various bits of metal in mid-flight dropped to the ground. Only a few men had held onto their weapons. They nervously looked at the Decepticons.

Before either group could move, a shadow detached itself from a high cliff. It took on the form of a large jet, flying a suicide course towards the truck. Too fast for the men to follow, it changed into a sand-colored robot and landed on the truck bed. The robot grabbed the cube, ripped off its straps, and leapt back into the air. As it transformed, it shoved the stolen device into the cargo bay of its jet mode. "Too slow!" it taunted. Then, Bugbite disappeared in a flash of jet exhaust.

Megatronus watched the Autobot leave, feeling a chuckle start as he imagined Bugbite's later reaction. He looked around, at the now helpless MASK soldiers, at Fowler lying in the dirt. The man groaned and muttered something that sounded like 'grandma'. It would be easy for him to end this, to slaughter all of these humans. But it wouldn't be right. He signaled to Soundwave. Together, they changed into their vehicle forms, and drove. Once they exited the jamming radius, Knockout would send a ground-bridge. He hoped it wasn't too late.

**A/N: a little bit more to go on this adventure. just a little bit more. hope you liked it :)**


	10. Twisted

Transformers Prime Shattered Glass

Chapter 9: Twisted

**A/N: okay, the person who keeps sending me 4-5 guest reviews each chapter, the next few paragraphs are for you. Everybody else, just skip to the list.**

**Look, dude, I'm glad you like my story. Really. But you don't need to send me four freaking reviews that pretty much say the exact same thing. Especially when I can't really understand what you've written anyways. I mean, did you graduate 4th grade English class? Don't you know spelling and grammar and puncuation? I like reviews, but even if you're sending me good ideas, if I can't read them, how can I use them?**

**Another thing: if you have an idea for an SG history, write it! Make your own fanfiction. That's why this site exists! Don't waste your time sending it to me in a review. Especially since I already wrote that historical chapter, which made the past of my SG universe set in stone. Primus is good, Unicron is bad. The Primes were Primes. Get over it. I wrote that so you'd stop telling me that crap anyway.**

**Now, if this hurts, use that. Show me why I shouldn't have written this. Get an account. Write a fanfiction. Learn spelling and grammar and punctuation. Just, please, make this a little easier and only send **_**one**_** review per chapter. One **_**well-written**_**, thought out review. Otherwise, my head may explode from frustration and this story will be over.**

**Thank you. **

**The list is still at only #12:  
1) polarity gauntlet  
2) red energon  
3) prototype from nemesis prime renamed Galvatron  
4) forge of Solus prime  
5) requiem blaster not star saber  
6) phase shifter  
7) cyber caliber (possible; also, I fixed the spelling finally!)  
****8) spark extractor  
9) tox-en  
10) Kremzeek (not to be named)  
11) The Seed (a different way to launch cybermatter)  
12) Transmetal (II) Driver**

**Last chapter for Breakdown-being-captured story. I figure the next little adventure will be where we meet the SG versions of the main human characters, so, it should be fun.**

**Now, where did we leave off...**

Jack forced his heels into the ground, feeling like the soles of his sneakers were melting. The door to the MASK server room slammed into him again, bursting another set of blood vessels in his shoulder. The bruise hurt like hell, but he held on. Behind him, Raf tapped the keys of his laptop so fast it sounded like one long staccato rythm. Alarms blared throughout the underground compound. The soldiers kicked at the door again. The hinges rattled, and a crack ran up from the base.

"How...much...longer?" Jack grunted.

Raf didn't answer. From the other side of the door, a new voice shouted for the soldiers to move aside. Jack's shoulder hurt to the point that he didn't even really care. He didn't know how Miko was holding out. She was wedged in next to him, back against the door. Jack figured her whole neck area was one big bruise.

The kicking had stopped. When it didn't start again, they both sighed, and slid to the floor. A moment later, there was an enourmous crash, and the head of an axe cleaved through the door. Instinctively, Jack grabbed Miko's wrist and pulled them away from the door. The axe-wielding commando yanked his weapon from the door before delivering a kick that tore the hinges out. The inch-thick wood slab collapsed off to the side. The alarms stopped. Moments later, four combat ready soldiers stormed in, machine guns at the ready. They came up short when they caught sight of the two teens.

"What the- its just some kids!" the lead man shouted behind him.

An enormous man stepped into the room. He had chocolate colored skin and more muscles than most professional wrestlers. He wore combat gear like the others, but on him it was stretched taut, like it was a size too small. In his left hand was the axe he'd used to break the door. The man looked at Jack and Miko like they were pond scum, then grunted. "My name is Sergeant Vogel," he said. "But you can call me Seargeant Vogel. Stand up."  
-

As soon as he passed out of the jamming radius, a flood of communications assaulted Megatronus. Knockout had been trying to reach him, it seemed, for the last several minutes. "What is it?" he growled into the communicator.

"_Thank the Allspark_!" Knockout's relief was palpable. "_The children are gone_!_ They hijacked the ground-bridge and_-"

"I am aware. They are in danger. Soundwave and I require a bridge."

A moment later, the air split into a red vortex. Megatronus resumed his robot form and strode through into the base. As soon as Soundwave did the same, Knockout closed the bridge.

"Where's Breakdown?" Airachnid asked.

"Agent Fowler... lied," he said simply. "As we expected. We mustn't waste time, however." Megatronus turned his gaze on Knockout. "Reactivate the ground-bridge. Use the same coordinates as Jack, Miko, and Raf."  
-

Jack shakily got to his feet. Miko latched onto his arm and hauled herself up. Both of them stood very still. The axe blade looked like it was made for chopping redwoods, and Sergeant Vogel didn't look like he had a real sense of humor. He looked the two teens over like suspects in a line up. Which, Jack reflected, they technically were. After a moment, Vogel turned his attention to where Raf was sitting. Jack was startled that Raf hadn't moved, nor had he stopped typing. "C'mon, c'mon," he was muttering.

Vogel pointed his axe at the boy. "Stop him!" he bellowed. Two men raised their guns and took a step forward.

Jack felt a rush of adrenaline as he imagined his friend's body riddled like swiss he thought about the Decepticons, and all that was riding on this. Jack tensed, and did the stupidest thing he'd ever done: he tackled Vogel. The two of them went down in a tangle of limbs. Jack's bruised shoulder hit the floor, but he tightened his grip on Vogel's neck. The two soldiers immediately turned to protect their commander, only to be confronted by Miko, who picked up Vogel's fallen axe. With a mighty two-handed swing, she buried the business end in the chest of the nearest soldier. He fell, coughing up blood.

Jack couldn't really process that, because Vogel kept thrashing, gasping for air. Every time the man bucked, the bruise on Jack's shoulder felt like white-hot spikes were being shoved in. As hard as he tried, his grip was loosening.

Miko had jumped on the second soldier, knocking his head into the wall. The final man didn't appear eager to jump in, but he raised his gun and locked onto Miko. "Freeze!" he shouted. She did freeze, holding up her hands. Neither of the men she'd attacked got up though.

After an eternity, Vogel pried Jack away from his neck. The man hit him in the shoulder, and Jack collapsed in agony. Vogel struggled to his feet. "Private Daley," he snarled. "Cuff that little bitch, then the kid at the computer. No more funny business." He cleared his throat and spat a lougie that landed on Jack's sneaker.

Daley cautiously approached Miko, motioning for her to put her hands together. Vogel stalked over the floor to his fallen men. He yanked the axe out of the one's chest, and a massive flow of blood pooled out onto the floor. Glassy eyes stared at the ceiling.

Jack blinked away the pain, watching as Daley used one hand to secure handcuffs to Miko's left wrist. Behind them, Raf was still typing. Just as Vogel turned, bloody axe in hand, Raf screamed enthusiatically. "I got it!" He slammed down on the 'Enter' key. From somewhere below them, there was a series of small explosions, followed by a bellow of un-Earthly rage.

"No!" Vogel leapt for Raf, but a larger explosion rocked the room, and he missed. The man's head slammed into the table. At the same time, Miko whipped the unsecured handcuff into the face of Private Daley, who fell back clutching a bleeding nose.

"Come on!" She grabbed Jack's wrist and pulled him along. Raf yanked his laptop out of the server, then joined them in the hall. More explosions rocked the base. Overhead bulbs flickered. Some of the lights dropped out of the ceiling and swung on sparking wires. Alarms once again rended the air.

Jack desperately tried to keep from falling on his face as they ran up to the exit. Miko dropped his arm, and he stumbled, but managed to stay up. She heaved down on a large lever, just to the side. A different alarm sounded as the door lifted. Hydraulics squealed, but the three of them ducked out before the door even finished rising.

Somehow, Jack wasn't surprised to be greeted by a circle of military vehicles and soldiers. They seemed to be surprised when three kids emerged, which may have been all that saved their lives. Then another rage filled howl echoed out of the tunnel. An armored truck roared up the ramp, shooting out and transforming in mid-air into the form of Breakdown. The Decepticon extended twin hammers from his arms, and body slammed the MASK troops. The soldiers scattered as he tore into their vehicles, their bullets pinging off his armor.

Jack watched as even more alarms sounded, more troops pouring out of the hangars. Some of them had much bigger guns, guns Jack was sure would be able to hurt Breakdown. In his beserker rage, the Decepticon didn't even seem to notice the rallying forces.

Then the ground-bridge opened, and all hell truly broke out.  
-

Megatronus charged from the red whirlpool of light, arm cannons fully primed. In an instant, he took in the chaos of the battlefield. He saw Jack, Miko, and Raf huddled behind an overturned Humvee, Breakdown tearing into the soldiers, more humans mobilizing. They were outnumbered ten to one, and the humans knew how to fight. Megatronus did the logical thing. He attacked.

Opening fire with both guns, he scattered the human reinforcements. Breakdown looked up from his fight, the mindless rage in his optics subsiding. Realizing how overmatched he was, the bruiser began to slowly back towards the others. Megatronus pressed their momentary advantage, Soundwave and Airachnid right behind him. The two-wheeler launched a stream of webbing that glued a battalion to the ground.

"Get to the bridge!" Megatronus shouted to the children. They looked up at him, then charged across the open ground. Targeting the largest group of soldiers, he loosed a second barrage. Plasma explosions ripped through the ranks. Flames leapt from the craters. Looking at the airplane hangars, Megatronus was struck with a sudden idea. He sent a plasma burst directly into the nearest building. The Decepticons threw themselves on the ground. A moment later, the aviation fuel inside burst into an enormous conflagration. Flaming wreckage was thrown into the next building, and that one, too, exploded. The chain reaction made its way through the entire base, until all of the hangars had been reduced to rubble.

Once the earth stopped shaking, Megatronus slowly got to his feet. Most of the soldiers were alive, if injured. Buildings burned in every direction. He nodded, pleased with himself, then looked behind him for the children. He could just make out their blurred forms on the other side of the ground-bridge. Good.

A moment later, a solid explosive round slammed into the tarmac at Megatronus' feet. The blast sent him tumbling backwards, until finally he skidded to a stop on his chest. Megatronus looked up to see a squadron of MASK tanks making their way towards them. The vehicles were nothing like their clunky ancestors. Instead of treads, each had six enormous tires. Rather than one barrel, with perhaps a machine gun or missile launcher, the MASK tanks were outfitted with _three_ railgun-type launchers, each on an independent turret, and several Hesperide weapons, class XXG. The rounds were capable of punching a hole in the side of a battleship- after punching a hole through the battleship in front of it. They were fast, sleek, and deadly. There was only one option against such a formidable force.

"Decepticons!" Megatronus called. "Retreat!"

The others hastily transformed into their vehicle forms, speeding into the groundbridge. Airachnid, Soundwave, Breakdown. At last, only Megatronus faced the humans. In the distance, he could just make out the convoy Agent Fowler had brought, making its way back into the base. Too late. Megatronus let off one last barrage, then ran for the bridge. He hurled himself through, just as the tanks unleashed their first round. As the ground-bridge closed, the tarmac erupted into molten rock.  
-

Agent Fowler was pissed. The DINGUS was gone. His most secure compound, breached. His prisoner, gone. On top of everything, his head was throbbing where it had hit the truck. It didn't improve his mood any.

His truck pulled into the base just in time for him to witness the Decepticons' escape. He had hoped the tank rounds would obliterate Megatronus, but of course not. The truck maneuvered through rubble and broken bodies, finally coming to a halt beside the hidden- formerly hidden- entrance. Fowler hopped out of the passenger seat. His boots crunched on broken and fused rock. For a moment, he simply surveyed the massive damage. Then two figures emerged from the smoke-filled tunnel.

One of them was Sergeant Vogel, instantly recognizable by his massive silhouette. The other was a young soldier Fowler was unfamiliar with. The two men stumbled up the ramp and stopped about three feet away. "Well?" Fowler rumbled.

Vogel met his eyes evenly. "Three kids. Working with the aliens."

"And you let them get away?"

Shame and embarassment crept into the man's features. "I underestimated them. Let my anger get the better of me. It won't happen again."

Fowler nodded. He turned his attention to the other man. "What the hell happened to you?"

The man's face had a large, circular bruise extending from his obviously broken nose. Blood streaked down his cheeks. One eye was swollen almost shut, and his lip was puffy. "Hit by a loose handcuff," he muttered. The words were delivered with a slight lisp, and he didn't meet Fowler's eyes. His opinion of the soldier, already low, dropped further.

"Really. And how'd that happen?" It was hard to tell where the man's bruises ended and his blush began. His whole face was lobster red. "Tell you what. You look like you could use a visit to the infirmary. Go ahead. I'm sure Sergeant Vogel and I can handle things."

The man straightened, putting on a false bravado. "No, sir! I'll stay and-" The man's words were cut off as Fowler fired his Hesperide. The shell blasted through the man's kneecap, shattering the bones but cauterizing the wound. His lower leg and foot flopped to the ground. The rest of him hit not a moment later. The man was screaming bloody murder.

"Did I stutter? You're supposed to follow orders, soldier." Fowler gestured to his driver. "Take this pathetic lump of flesh to the infirmary." The man hastily obeyed. Fowler and Vogel stood alone among the ruins of their base.

Vogel leaned on his axe, studying the devastation. "I take it your mission was a failure."

Fowler punched the truck's door. "More or less. An Autobot stole the DINGUS."

"I didn't steal it." The men whirled when they heard the soft voice behind them. There, leaning against the other side of the truck, was the alien who had taken the device. He gestured to a large cube-shape resting on the truck bed. "I was merely keeping it from the Decepticons."

Fowler almost raised his Hesperide before he remembered it was empty. The downside to the powerful weapon was that it only held one shell at a time. Given how easily the Autobot had simply appeared, it was likely he'd be gone before Fowler could radio for reinforcements. "What is it that you want?"

The robot grinned. "Nothing right now. But you owe me one. And you can be sure that I'll collect." In an instant, the sand-colored alien shifted into the form of a fighter jet, shooting off into the horizon. Fowler glanced at Vogel, seeing his own disbelief etched in the Sergeant's features. This alien was just _giving_ them a weapon of mass destruction? Fowler's gaze fell back on the box, and a horrible possibility occured to him.

He gestured to Vogel's axe. "Lemme borrow that." Fowler raised the blade up high, then chopped into the side of the cube. Vogel cried out in fear as metal tore metal, no doubt expecting a lethal dose of radiation to fry them. As it should have. But nothing happened. Fowler peered through the gash he'd cut and grunted. Inside of the metal shell, a single blot of radioactive isotope- the kind used to trace money- glowed against the alloy. Fowler tossed the axe back to Vogel. "It's a decoy. The Decepticons. They tricked us."  
-

"You tricked us!" Megatronus thundered. Jack sat cross-legged on the table in the Hub, a large bag of ice draped across his shoulder. Miko sat next to him with a similar arrangement. He, Miko, and Raf were simply absorbing Megatronus' righteous anger. Jack could tell though, that the Prime was simply glad they were alive. He would yell, but in the end everything had turned out alright.

"It worked, didn't it?" Miko muttered. She seemed different since they got back. A little quieter. A little more thoughtful.

"Knockout and Airachnid were perfectly capable of infiltrating the sytem!"

Raf shook his head. "The MASK firewalls were too secure. I was on site, and I could barely get through." He paused a moment. "I also save your life. You're welcome for that."

"It might not have needed saving if you had stuck to the plan. A plan that you came up with," he added.

Raf shrugged. "Plans change."

Jack watched as Megatronus' optics flared. The Prime's fingers clenched into a fist several times. Finally, he turned and stomped out of the room. Waves of anger forced the other Decepticons out of the way. A minute later, sounds like metal furniture being smashed echoed out of the hall. It was all Jack could do not to laugh, which he figured would just hurt.

He looked up to see Breakdown leaning in conspiracy-like. All of the other Cons had dispersed. The bruiser looked a little embarassed. "I... wanted to apologize. And thank you for saving my life. Maybe you guys aren't all that bad." It wasn't much in the way of glowing praise, but Jack would take what he could get. He extended a hand towards Breakdown.

"Anytime," Jack promised, as they shook hands.

Soon, even Raf got up and climbed down from the table. Jack sat there, alone except for Miko. She stared into the darkened room. "Hey," he called.

She shuffled around until they were facing one another. "What." Jack was startled to see glistening tear tracks on her cheeks. He'd never seen Miko cry. Never. Even though they were face to face, she wouldn't meet his eyes.

"What's wrong?"

Miko didn't answer immediately, but Jack didn't press. After a while, she spoke. "That guard, the one I hit with the axe." She looked at him expectantly.

"Er- yeah. Yeah, I remember."

"I think I killed him."

Jack considered that. The idea was slightly terrifying. Miko was a fighter, but she wasn't a killer. At least, he hadn't thought so. Of course, he'd tried to strangle Vogel, so who was he to judge. "You didn't have much choice. He would've killed us." Even to him, the words sounded hollow.

"I know. Its just... Back home, it wouldn't have happened. MECH- evil MECH- wouldn't have tried to kill us directly. Like on the train. They let us go."

Jack remembered the train. It was one of the few times before entering this world that he'd thought he might die. "They left us alone because they blew the tracks. They thought we were going to die anyway." When she didn't say anything, Jack pushed ahead. "Its the same everywhere. One side or the other has to win. And I'd choose us over them any day."

For a moment, Miko was silent. Then she looked up, and Jack saw new fire in her eyes. "Maybe," she said. "But from now on? No killing. I won't, and I won't let you either. We have to be better, try harder. Just because they kill, doesn't mean we should too. That's why we're the good guys. That's what seperates us, from them."

**A/N: how about that? Slightly disturbing, but it seems pretty awesome, and opens up many new doors. So lets see. I've harvested ideas from Shadowzone and Operation: Breakdown. Next is Crisscross. Like I said. We'll be seeing SG versions of the humans. Fun. This is the perfect story for Halloween time!**


	11. White Snake

Transformers Prime Shattered Glass

Chapter 10: White Snake (Here We Go Again)

**A/N: ****Hey, how come everybody commented on Miko killing that random guy, but no one even mentioned Fowler blowing away the President? What the heck?**

**Eh. Okay, so everyone in the civilized world should have watched the teaser trailer for Avengers Age of Ultron by now. If you haven't, well, **** you. Everybody else, I have been influenced a lot by the first Avengers film. I plan on integrating Ultron's personality into one or more of my villains in this story. Unicron, most likely, or possibly Galvatron. And if this fic is still going when I see Avengers 2, which I think will be likely, then I will integrate other aspects of the movie too.**

**List:  
1) polarity gauntlet  
2) red energon  
3) prototype from nemesis prime renamed Galvatron  
4) forge of Solus prime  
5) requiem blaster not star saber  
6) phase shifter  
7) cyber caliber (possible)  
****8) spark extractor  
9) tox-en  
10) Kremzeek (not to be named)  
11) The Seed (a different way to launch cybermatter)  
12) Transmetal (II) Driver  
13) the cloning technology, contained in the second half of the Harbinger that broke away**

**By the way, if you can imagine that the characters are speaking in the same voice they had in the show, its way better. Megatronus with Frank Welker's voice, Bugbite with Will Friedle's. Remember Peter Cullen's Nemesis Prime voice? Before we knew it was Silas. That was awesome!**

**This is a little late for All Hallows' Eve, but here you go:**

The arrow shaped vessel plunged into the planet's atmosphere. Drawn onward by a familiar signal, it made for the most populated landmass. The computers, occupied with the task of landing, failed to notice the ring of debris encircling the world. Everything from tiny nuts and bolts, to massive booster stages for primitive rockets drifted over the planet's surface. One of those metal monstrosities spun on a path that intercepted the ship.

Concussive force sent the craft end over end. Heat shields flared in the uncontrolled descent. They buckled and ripped away, leaking trails of plasma. Energy bursts shoved the ship down, down. On the continent below, three sets of sensors tracked the vessel's descent.

The ship fell out of the sky as a ball of fire. The forest region below grew silent, then raucous as the wildlife fought to get away. Few succeeded. The vessel leveled out so that it landed directly on its underbelly. Trees were flattened by its girth, oaks that had stood for centuries, gone. It ripped a path through the foliage and ground that stretched for more than a kilometer. Finally, a broken trunk lodged in the cracked hull, and stuck. The nose of the craft slammed downward when the trunk caught in the ground, and it flipped high into the air. The nose bent, the fins and stabalizers snapped, and it fell onto its head. The once mighty vessel lay there, upside down, a smoking wreck.

Emergency klaxons of every type echoed through the ship's halls. Near the crumpled nose, a pod emerged from what had been the floor. Debris shifted as the computers fought to save its occupant. Finally, it split open, and the only living being on the ship fell to the ceiling. It landed heavily among the ruins. The surviver began clawing its way feebly through the corridors. It was damaged. And angry.  
-

High above the Defederacy, a metal mostrosity slipped silently through the air. Its shape vaguely resembled a stealth aircraft, with a short body and swept-back wings. But its thick bodied construction bore little resemblance to Earthly conveyance. The organically sharp edges and jointed wings were the work of Cybertronian hands. It was the Autobot warship. The Ark.

Most of the ship was still, and quiet. The bridge, however, bustled with activity. Bugbite watched the scramble from his post at the helm. The controls were set far back from the omni-directional, wrap-around viewports. The setup allowed the helmsman to view the entire crew. A good-humored grin spread across Bugbite's faceplate. Despite the sunlight that angled through the windows, the room was dark and foreboding. Chaos, confusion, and contradiction reigned as the Omnibots manning the ship tried to make sense of the incoming readings. Deep space tracks, seismic impacts, energon. It was laughable, the way the drones behaved. He wasn't about to tell them to stop.

"Could we please have order?" he drawled, leaning back. None of the drones paid him any attention. That suited him just fine. Just to stoke the fire, as it were, he reached out and caressed the main controls. Just enough to alter the drones' own controls. Bugbite chuckled.

That chuckle died in his throat as a tingling sensation worked its way up his spinal strut. The feeling intensified and spread, down his arms and legs, across his chest. Bugbite's servos began to rattle. It took his frazzled mind a moment to realize that every drone on the bridge had stopped moving, their joints locked and trembling.

Bugbite shook himself fiercly, dispelling the odd sensation. The Omnibots did the same, though several collapsed after. They appeared unconscious. Bugbite convulsed his throat, rather like a human swallowing. It served no physical purpose, but it felt good. A small noise reached his audio receptors: a low thud, as if someone had dropped a block. The jittering feeling returned, a wave of nervousness. A second thud resounded, a second wave that washed over Bugbite and the others like a tide of fear. From deep in the ship, from the centermost cabin where no light ever reached, he came for them.

The drones began clambering to return to their stations and get into order, before it was too late. Bugbite postured himself at the helm. Swells of panic rushed over him, and he fought to keep his voicebox from tearing itself out of his throat in fear. The waves came faster, stronger, as Omnibots across the ship fled from the presence making its way to the bridge. It was so visceral, so powerful, the ship itself seemed to feel it. Turbulence rocked them when the wings shuddered.

Bugbite had to consciously will himself not to leak transmission fluid as the thudding footsteps got louder. He gasped for ventilation, the beat of his spark accelerating, faster, faster. The steps stopped, and Bugbite instantly regained his composure. The door spiraled open.

At first, all that was visible was the massive shadow on the other side of the door. It was so huge, it had to stoop in the hall to prevent the horns on its head from scraping the ceiling. The being angled himself through the too-small doorway, into the dim lighting of the bridge. He straightened to his full height, towering over the other Autobots. Bugbite cautiously studied the reflection on the command screens.

Obsidian armor covered his Redwood-thick limbs. Antennae-like horns jutted vertically from the sides of his helm. That helm was the same stormy-ocean hue as his legs. His arms and torso were covered by metal the color of decayed organic musculature. All of his armor had a strange pitted look around the edges, almost like rust, though it wasn't. Purple light seeped from his joints.

But more horrible than his demonic appearance was his aura. He exuded power and malice. Darkness rolled away from him into the ether, layer upon layer morality so twisted and repulsive, even Bugbite wanted to run screaming. And yet there was a gravity to him. Those near were drawn to him; his depravity was contagious. It infiltrated the minds of all those around him, wound into their processors or brains. It breathed corruption into their souls until every thought, every idea that came out was perverted and viscious. It turned wrong into right, sin into virtue, obscenity into normalcy. He was the incarnation of all that was disturbed in the universe. He was foul. He was evil. He was Optimus Rex.

"Master," Bugbite bowed. His fingers twitched as he imagined tearing that horrid armor to pieces. Bugbite imagined plucking the bio-mechs out one by one, until all that would be left was an empty frame. Someday, he vowed that he would. Even if it took him a thousand eons, he would.

Optimus brushed past him, taking his place at the controls, fists behind his back. He surveyed the drones below with undisguised contempt. Purple fire flickered behind those red optics. Optimus' mouthplate parted to reveal rows of sharpened denta. "Report," he called, his voice a deep growl.

The windows flickered, converting into enormous data screens. Graphs, maps, all types of things that Bugbite barely understood. But it was plain enough what they meant, once it was up on the screens. Even the Omnibots could see it. They started muttering amongst themselves.

"Be silent!" Optimus growled. The crew hastily obeyed. "A ship," he considered. "One of Cybertronian origin."

Equal parts anger and fear churned within Bugbite as he glared at his leader. Seriously, with all the upgrades and changes he'd undergone, one of them should have included a faster processor. Just one more reason Bugbite wanted to depose him. The Autobots deserved a decisive leader.

"A small party," Optimus finally decided. "YOU!" he bellowed.

The Omnibot that was his target seemed to shrink. "Me?" it squeaked, placing a talon on its chest.

"Yes, you. Gather your brethren- three or four should be plenty. Search the ship. Return and inform me of what you find."

Bugbite stifled a laugh as the drone ran from the bridge, tripping and stumbling. Instead, he approached his leader. "Master, are you certain-" The words trailed away when Optimus gave him the Cybertronian evil eye over his shoulder. "I'll just... go check the armory." He walked stiffly into the halls.

Once the door closed, Bugbite's polite mask morphed into a snarl. This crash was an opportunity. One he did not intend to allow Optimus to take from him. "So sorry... _Master_." The word became a poisonous hiss in his mouth. Bugbite stalked down the halls. He would make his way to the launch bay of the Ark. He would follow the drones. This opportunity was his to claim.  
-

"Hmm. Strange," Knockout muttered.

Megatronus strode into the Hub, taking up a position behind him. "What is it?"

Knockout skillfully manipulated the onscreen images, bringing the object into focus. In the week since Breakdown's kidnapping and subsequent rescue, the other's had been focused on finding a way to defeat MASK. Meanwhile, Knockout realized just how lax they had become about security. Breakdown had just driven straight out of the base, for Primus' sake! Granted, the subterranean tunnel surfaced several miles from the base, but still. He'd begun to re-enforce the rule that they only enter and exit the base via ground-bridge. He'd created several new encryption algorithms for their communications. He'd even begun working on a new type of cloaking that would render the base completely invisible. MASK would never see them coming. But when Knockout looked at the monitors now, he kicked himself. He'd been so focused on the human threat that he'd forgotten the real war. "Deep Space Reconnaisance Orbiters picked up this track. Its flight is more consistant with a meteor than anything, but when I pull up its landing site..." Knockout caressed the controls. A map appeared, distorted colors forming the vague image of the Defederacy. Most of it was blues and greens. But in the northeast, a long yellow track ended in a bulge of red and orange. Megatronus' optic widened.

"Energon." The physician nodded. Megatronus considered for a moment, then spoke into the ship's comms. "Airachnid, please join us in the Hub."

While they waited, Knockout brought up real-time satellite images of the landing site. The area was heavily forested. Well, it had been. Airachnid walked in a moment later, and Knockout was surprised to see that she was in deep conversation with Jack. Those two had been avoiding each other since day one, but now they talked like best friends. It made no sense to him- until he realized that Jack was telling her the plot of a movie from his world. That femme had a strange obsession with human culture. Unhealthy, in his opinion.

"-And then he drove the car right out through the front of the airplane. It crashed, but he made it. They traded the device to get their old lives back, and pretty much lived happily ever after. The end."

Airachnid smiled. "What, no credits-scene?"

Jack laughed. "Okay, okay. It showed a scene from the third movie, from a different angle. It was the death of the Japanese guy. They showed that his death was murder, not an accident. And the guy who did it left the cross necklace nearby as a message."

The femme appeared to swoon, like Jack's words were a drug and she'd reached her fix. Knockout would've been content to watch. The whole thing was kind of funny, and made him wonder how the two had even got on the topic of movies. But Megatronus let out a mighty sigh. "Please, pay attention!" Both of the film addicts snapped their heads around, watching the Prime. He motioned to Knockout. "Tell them."

He nodded. "The DSRO's brought _this_ to my attention-" he brought up the image again. "It _appeared _to be a standard meteor fragment, but when it landed, well..." Knockout motioned to the energon map. Airachnid looked vaguely interested. Jack, on the other hand, looked disturbed.

"This looks familiar," he muttered. "Like... major deja vu."

Megatronus knelt down. "Well? What is it?"

Jack seemed to hesitate. "It's- Well, when Airachnid arrived on Earth..." He looked up at the femme. "The _other_ Airachnid. The _other_ Earth." She nodded. "Well, the landing site was kind of like that. A huge trench in the forest. Strange energon readings. Arcee scouted the ship. I was with her."

"Ship?" Airachnid perked up. "You think its a ship?"

He shrugged. "Its a reasonable assumption. Only..."

Knockout exchanged a look with Megatronus. Okay, he'd only known Jack a week, and didn't really know him know him. But Knockout prided himself on being able to see a being's emotional state. He'd never seen Jack this hesitant. Jack was, to use the clinical term, freaking out. He was somewhere between scared, angry, and excited. "Well?" the physician prompted.

"The ship in my world brought Airachnid." Jack glanced away. "Here... well, it only makes sense that here the ship would belong to your nemesis."  
-

_Light. Light, and sky. A blue sky. Methane. So this was an organic world. She hissed in disgust. Organics died too easily. The broke in her claws without trying. She would've preferred a metal world._

_Not like she had much choice. Not that it mattered. What she sought was here, on this planet. Why it was here, how it was here, she didn't know. That didn't matter either. All that mattered was that she reach it, before the others._

_She reached upward with a shaking claw and dug her fingers into the steel floor. With a grunt, she hauled herself another few feet closer to the light. Her limbs trailed behind her body, useless. Eventually, her circuits would mend. But for now she had to drag the weight of the remaining seven. One had broken off. The others kept snagging on bits of metal. Ahead, the light hurt her optics, used to the darkness of interstellar space. This system had a young star, a small furnace that gave off yellowish white light. So different from the ruddy crimson of Cybertron's massive nexus. Different, in fact, from Velocitron, Quintessa, Gigantia, and all the other worlds she had visited in her search._

_Another reach, another pull. Ahead was a jagged hole in the side of her ship. The _Venetrix_. Given to her by a fellow hunter. She would be sure to thank him properly. The piece of trash hadn't withstood crashing into a primitive organic construction. If she'd been targeted by Cybertronians, the metal would've vaporized. She was lucky to have survived. He wouldn't be, if she ever got off this world._

_She stretched, heaved, baring fangs in pain. Energon dripped from her wounds, painting an ugly trail up the ramp. One more pull. She grasped the edge of the hole, then inhaled deeply. The organic atmosphere cut her ventilators harshly, but it was cooling. She mustered the last of her strength, and yanked herself forward, her pistons straining. She felt her lateral flexor tear free, a burst of pain beyond even that in her legs. But she had done it. She was in the light. She was-_

_Falling._

_Gravity took her past the hole, tumbling down the wreckage and onto soft loam. The dirt registered as a rather off putting shade of copper, or perhaps bronze. Dust particles wedged themselves into her joints instantly. They began to clog her ventilators. She began to hack and cough. When she lifted her head, she felt nauseated. Her legs were not meant to twist at those angles. Her arm shouldn't point that way. She had one intact limb, and she scrabbled desperately to get away. At least, it felt that way. She almost screamed in frustration when she realized that her arm moved in slow motion, like it was underwater. Acid poured from her claws, melting the dirt into a steaming puddle._

_It was a moment before she registered the presence. Three. Organic. Small. They scrabbled over the dirt ridges and metal fragments. They moved quickly, but with caution. She hadn't even heard them so much as she simply became aware of them. They were quiet. When one of them appeared over the nearest crest, she stifled a cry of shock. They stood upright on powerful legs, with thin forelimbs that held some type of weapon or tool. The creatures were bipedal. It was thought that only a mechanical being as advanced as a Cybertronian could achieve bipedal locomotion. All organics moved on four, six, or even eight legs. But these creatures traversed the rugged land with no trouble. She was surprised. More so by their other similarities to Cybertronian life. They were symmetrical excepting various scars, with a well proportioned head atop a straight torso._

_They yelled to one another in a language she did not know. Later, she would probably be able to translate, but she seemed to get the gist. They knew the ship was there, they knew what it was. They'd come for it. They'd come for her._

_She concentrated on her one good arm. She tried to force it to pull her forward, away from these strange creatures. For a moment, the arm held her up off the ground, and she thought it would work. Then it gave way, and she hit the ground hard. Her vision tinted redwith rage. Before she could stop herself, a string of cusses fell out of her mouth. The organics stopped yelling to one another for a moment, but she kept screaming profanities. She screamed her hatred for the _Venetrix_, for the one who gave it to her, for the junk that crashed it and for the miserable creatures that put it there, the same ones that now ran to her in excitement. She screamed at them, her vocorder spewing abuse in every language she knew. They obviously understood none of it, but one of them raised the weapon it carried. It pointed the device at her. It squeezed the trigger._

_She felt the weapon's payload impact her just below her chest. Strangely, she felt no wound; it was stuck to her outer skin. She trained her optics on the creature, putting all her hatred into her gaze, her voice no longer speaking words, only forcing out a single continuous shriek. The organic reached along the barrel of its weapon and activated a control. From the impact under her chest, a white-hot burst of electricity spread across her system. More pain spasmed through her, until finally it became to much. Her shriek cut off, her twisted limbs jerked. When the weapon shut off, she collapsed. Her optics lazily circled back to the organic that had done this to her. It was taller than its companions, with dark bronze skin and large musculature. It regarded her with contempt. With her last bit of energy, she whispered to it. Few things in language were universal, but one message of derision and hatred stood out. "Fuck you," she breathed, and passed out._  
-

Bugbite set down on a hill, roughly two clicks from the crash. It was one of the lucky few whose trees hadn't been ripped out or burned down. Bugbite took that as a good omen. He swung into a rather unnecessary loop, before transforming into his primary form. His peds slammed into the earth, sinking into soft dirt.

Down at the ship, the drone team did much the same, though with less style. He watched as the four of them stalked into the broken vessel. Bugbite snorted. If those four actually found anything important, he'd shove his missiles up his actuator. His optics telescoped into focus.

The hull was charred. There were cracks all around it, and several bits of foliage were wedged in. The ship appeared to be upside down. Letters- _Cybertronian _letters- on the side identified it as _Venetrix_. Stupid name for a ship. If it were his, he would've named it the_ Impaler_, something awesome like that. It was probably a femme's ship.

Bugbite's optics centered on a patch of green. The dirt to one side had been... What? Melted? Perhaps. Nearby was a trench, like something heavy had been dragged. Small specks of flourescent blue shone against the dirt. The energon trail continued up the side of the wreck, where a large hole had been torn. If not for the trail, Bugbite wouldn't have given it a second thought.

Before long, the four Omnibots emerged from the main hatchway. They glanced around, but none of them focused on the trail, or the hole. Bugbite grunted. His actuator was safe, at least. After a moment more, the drones leapt back into the air. No doubt they would tell Optimus that the ship had been abandoned, that the crash was meaningless. Bugbite often wondered how many incidents like that occured that went unnoticed.

He set off down the hill towards the ship, walking at a steady pace. It felt good to stretch his servos. Not quite as good as flight, but still a different good. Bugbite considered the wreckage. Should he scout the ship first, or analyze the green patch? Or perhaps look through the woods for a trail? He shook the question off. When he got there, he'd do whatever he felt like. Same as always.

Then the ground-bridge appeared.  
-

Jack hated forests. He'd grown up in Jasper, where the only trees were planted as community projects. The air was hot and dry, none of the mist and dampness of the woods. He'd only been in the forest once, and he'd sworn it would be the last. So, of course it wouldn't be.

He stepped down from the red vortex, feeling leaves crunch under his sneakers. MECH had hooked him and the others up with survival gear when they arrived. A brand new pack was strapped around Jack's waist. Sadly, it didn't include bugspray. He absently swatted at his neck. The mosquito whined past his ear, across his nose, and then away into the fog.

Airachnid stepped through behind him. She seemed taunt. The violet glint in her optics, which had faded while they talked about movies, was back. He still found it odd that she just came right up to him. "I'm bored," she'd said.

"What do you want me to do about it?" In the past week, he hadn't spoken to her at all. He sat in the center of the Hub table, trying to figure out what was in his shoe that he developed a large blister. Airachnid just leaned over, arms crossed and head lain over them.

"Tell me a story."

Jack had blinked. "Uh, I'm not so good at stories. Actually, I suck at it."

"What about a movie?"

"You havve a DVD player here?"

She'd laughed shrilly. "No, but you could tell me about a movie you remember."

And so it began. For a while she seemed almost normal- less crazy anyway. She definately wasn't like the other Decepticons though. He'd told her about a whole series of movies. Action flicks, where badass drivers pulled off Robin Hood thefts for the sake of family and ended up taking down real bad guys. Good films.

Of course, now he and Airachnid were in the middle of a foggy, bug infested wood, with a possible hostile around. Jack was trying not to think about that day, but it was hard. The trees looked so familiar- they could've been the same ones. He had a double take. They probably _were_ the same trees. It would make a twisted sort of sense.

"Stay close," Airachnid advised. "But stay out the way." She raised the hand-held, scanning. After a moment, she took off into the woods. Jack had to sprint to keep up. The tree roots didn't help.

After a minute, they found the edge. A huge trench had been gouged into the landscape, so it was hard to miss. Once again Jack was assaulted by a sense of deja vu. He'd seen this before. The wreckage, the ship. Because it was a ship, no doubt. He could see the engines, though they'd somehow ended up pointing backwards. Much of the frame was cracked open. Some of the holes were big enough to drive a car through. He realized that he'd been decieved by the scale of the forest. This ship was even bigger than the one from his world.

They made their way closer. Airachnid stepped over smaller trenches and bits of rubble, but they were an obstacle course for him. Jack sweated in his long sleeved shirt. When he made his way down another slope, he slipped. Before he could catch himself, a large metal hand latched onto him. Airachnid slowly placed him on the ground. "Thanks," he gasped. He realized there was a large greenish pool at the foot of the incline. It burbled and hissed. Jack flashed back to a steaming tree trunk, shredded by alien claws. He looked up at Airachnid, who gazed at the pool the same way his guardian had looked at the stump. "She's here, isn't she." It came out as a whisper.

"Yes." Airachnid's throaty voice was even more hoarse. "Arcee."

**A/N: shouldn't have been any real surprises in this one. Lots of references. Actually kind of short when you consider. I figure this 'adventure' with Arcee should take up the next 4 chapters or so, maybe less if I really get into the writing.**

**I've been toying with the idea for a second fanfic. Not a Transformers fic, but one that would be a sequel to Rick Riordan's Heroes of Olympus Saga. I figure fans want to know what happens with Nico and Will, Leo and Calypso, and even Reyna. I have some vague ideas, but if I get some support, I might be motivated enough to turn it into a full story. Whaddaya think?**


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